An unusual guest paid tribute to Pope Francis’ audience at the Vatican on Wednesday. The famous superhero of the web, Spider-Man, from Marvel comics and movie adaptations, appeared on stage – announce Reuters.
The costume was meticulously crafted, more reminiscent of what was seen in Andrew Garfield’s 2014 movie The Amazing Spiderman 2.
Spider-Man sat quietly next to a priest for some time, then at the end of the audience he introduced himself to Pope Francis and handed the Catholic Archbishop the mask of Spider-Man.
It was later revealed that behind the mask was not Peter Parker, but 27-year-old Mattia Villardita, who is best known for her charitable performance. Hiding in uniform, he visited sick children in hospitals, which pleased them. When he could not go in person due to the coronavirus pandemic, he reached out to the children by phone. In addition to more than 1,400 calls in total, he also received the Italian President Sergio Mattarella’s award for his work last year. For this reason it is also included in the section of VIPs of the papal audience.
The Vatican described Mattia Villardita as a “very good superhero” in a statement issued following the papal presence.