Will Reeve Reacts to Comparisons to Father Christopher: 'I Always Take That as a Compliment'
The ABC News correspondent opened up to PEOPLE at the "An Eve with Reeve" benefit
Will Reeve knows the public has an interest in how much he looks like his movie star dad, and he sees it as a compliment.
The ABC News correspondent, who is the youngest child of late Superman actor and activist Christopher Reeve and Dana Reeve, opened up about the physical similarities between himself and his father Friday night at the "An Eve with Reeve" benefit for the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation — which Will is a board member of.
As Will, 31, explained, he's "very fortunate to have the life that I do."
"And I think that if the public might find a little interest in, 'Oh, he his looks like his famous dad,' that's great," Reeve tells PEOPLE. "That means they're talking about my family in a positive light and remembering our dad and our mom and our family in a way that honors them."
"I always take that as a compliment," he also shares. "I think that I had two beautiful parents, inside and out, and if I bear any resemblance to them physically, or temperamentally, or in my values, then I take that as a compliment every day."
Related: Who Is Christopher Reeve's Youngest Child? All About Will Reeve
The annual gala for "An Eve with Reeve" — now in its third decade — took place at The Glasshouse in New York City for a "re-imagined" event. Will and his sister Alexandra Reeve Givens both poke with PEOPLE about how Team Reeve aims to raise money for the foundation at the New York City Marathon on Sunday, and what Will sees as his own super power going into this weekend: His "ability to connect with people."
"I love people, I love as it relates to the Reeve Foundation and the community that we are so focused on building. Nothing makes me happier or prouder than when people who might not otherwise have known each other, or have known about us or our cause, come together and leave with something meaningful," Will says.
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The foundation's mission, per its website, is to advance research and improve the quality of life for those impacted by spinal cord injuries.
"And I pride myself on bringing people into our community," Will explains. "As I always say, once you're in, you're in and my goal is keep growing that community by connecting people and making sure that, yeah, everybody has a good time at an event like this, enjoys their marathon experience if they're running for us or cheering for us, but broader or more important than having a nice time is finding a deep connection to something that matters so our community can grow."
Related: Will Reeve Will Be 'Thinking' of Parents Dana and Christopher Crossing N.Y.C. Marathon Finish Line
Will has previously reflected fondly on the memory of his father, who died in 2004, nine years after an equestrian injury left him paralyzed from the neck down, and two years before his mother Dana died of lung cancer. In 2021, Will wrote a touching tribute to Christopher in honor of Father's Day, and shared it with Good Morning America.
"I'm 29 now and have finally started to understand what honoring my dad actually means," he wrote at the time. "I thought it meant following the roads he would want me to go down, or to live my life as his proxy, making up for lost time according to his thwarted dreams."
"Turns out, our parents want us to find out who we are and go be that. That is the ultimate form of honor."
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Read the original article on People.