Meet the President: Ben Stiller calls Ukraine’s “inspiring” President Zelenskyy “my hero”

Actor, director and United Nations Goodwill Ambassador Ben Stiller met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Monday’s World Refugee Day.

Stiller called Zelenskyy his “hero,” as he gave up a career in front of the camera for public service — and that was before he became the face of defiance amid the Russian invasion.

“You quit a great acting career for this,” Stiller said to the leader, to which the former comedian replied, “Not so great as yours,” getting a laugh from the Meet The Parents star.

“But what you’ve done and the way that you’ve rallied the country and for the world, it’s really inspiring,” Stiller told Zelenskyy, calling it a “great honor” to meet him.

Stiller is visiting Poland and Ukraine as an ambassador for the United Nations High Commission for Refugees, and as such is calling for urgent global support and funding for millions of refugees worldwide.

He’s also scheduled to visit Irpin, the scene of heavy fighting early in the Russian invasion of Ukraine.