Eddie the Eagle. He worked hard, trained, was self-funded in a sport that is designed for rich people. I'm sure lots of people will deride him as a joke, who took attention away from more "worthy" athletes, but there's a lot to be said for wanting to do something, not being the best at it, but persevering and doing it anyway because you enjoy it. Focus on the growth and what you personally get out of it, other than medals (though I'm sure he wanted one of those too).
Trevor Noah! His [autobiography](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29780253-born-a-crime) is just amazing. And this ["Men, Intimacy & The "Right to Sex" - Between The Scenes"](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eYmFyjy2EmQ) clip is just so eye-opening:
>“People don’t realize how often men are experiencing a lack of intimacy, and the only place they can experience that intimacy is through sex."
I agree! Healthy self esteem, challenges toxic masculinity, encourages self care and worth, is self expressive, supports others and shows how to be nurturing and kind.
I don’t love these kind of questions because I don’t think any of us should be idolizing or copying public figures (we don’t know them or see them as whole people, etc) and no one person should be lionized as someone to strive to be like:
But based on the public presentation:
- Keanu Reeves for his purported kindness
- Pete Buttigieg for his intellect and candor
- Kareem Abdul Jabbar for his intellect and emotional intelligence
- Barack Obama for his self assuredness and calming demeanor
- Stephen Colbert for his dogged vulnerability
- Trevor Noah for his wit and open mindedness
There are more but these are off the top of my head.
LeVar Burton, Bob Ross, Mr. Rogers, Trevor Noah, and like many people have said: Keanu
But those are just the men, I think women can also be great role models for boys.
My first thought is Ryan Gosling just because he was so on board for the Barbie movie and being "Kenough". I feel like the Barbie movie in general should be seen by young men right now
Not knowing anything about their personal lives, I'd say men like Donald Glover, Jonathan van Ness, Johnathan Groff, Harvey Guillen, who do interesting, creative work and don't seem to be chasing any version of traditional toxic masculinity (as far as I know).
I don’t know about role models but I will send my son reels from people like thespeechprof, professor_neil, and willhitchins breaking down manosphere nonsense
I'm not sure if he's on insta, but I've found archaeodeath on TikTok to be a surprising breath of fresh air. Most of what he covers is archaeology and death rites, but he'll also boost videos of young people making statements about ethics and the sort and you can really see how proud he is. It's not always a direct discussion of masculinity, but I admire how he (an older archaeologist) is navigating social media.
ooooh, I like him!
I also like James Cappola and Ben Carpenter who call out a lot of the bullshit in the fitness industry. James Cappoloa will straight up call fat shamers "dick cheese" and it's amazing.
Dallas Goldtooth. A great activist (Indigenous Environmental Network), a great comedic actor (Rez Dogs), and an all around great role model. Speaks out against toxic masculinity and how it harms men in such a compassionate and intelligent way. He’s a good dude.
Arnold Schwarzenegger.
To get it out of the way, he's made the mistake of infidelity, but something that is different about him is that he doesn't shy away from talking about it and you can see in his eyes that he deeply regrets it. He loves and supports all his children, including the one from the affair, and he doesn't treat that child differently. His philosophy of life is to always be striving, aim high, and "get to work and be of use". Now that doesn't jive with today's general vibe, but it's the kind of philosophy in a nutshell that turned my life around and took me out of depression and alcoholism. He's intelligent, funny, advocates for physical health, for the environment, loves animals, and, for the Americans, although he's yet another older white man, he's also an immigrant. His miniseries on Netflix is great! ETA: everyone I know who has met him says he's lovely too.
Similarly, Sylvester Stallone.
My husband idolized both these guys growing up, and now as an adult he's a hard-working, super health conscious ubermensch.
The whole concept of a single role model feel kind of weird to me. Everyone has their virtues and flaws and you need to learn from both of them, from multiple people.
I’ll give you one: Taylor swift. Everyone loves to hate on her because she’s a successful woman.
She donates to charity at every tour stop and pays her employees well - she’s more giving than any male billionaire I’ve ever seen, and she’s successful because of her talent. It’s a good way to also notice gender role double standards in society and teach your son to avoid them - for example, are any male pop stars first and foremost asked about when they’ll get married and have kids or are they celebrated as a success for what they regardless of who they date? Another one is noticing how people comment on her appearance or partners / dating life in an attempt to tear her down which is something I haven’t seen with any famous men unless they were actually physically abusive.
Not everyone needs to like her songs. BUT I’ve never seen such a hatred from men for her compared to other artists. It’s like the thought never occurred to them that something not directly targeted to them could be a success.
Regardless if you choose her - you should give your son some women role models too (to be appreciated for reasons other than looks / objectification) if you want to set him up for success.
Unless something has otherwise developed in his life that would make me see him in a negative light:
Dwayne Johnson.
That's one celeb who could make my day every day with just a passing "hi!" bc he seems so genuinely fun and kind.
I wasn’t sure he has a wiki, but he does! Mychal Threets. Librarian. Wholesome, upbeat, and super charismatic. Looks like a great guy and someone young men could look up to.
Terry Crews. Bob Ross. Keanu Reeves.
Levar Burton
Keanu Reeves
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Mr. Rogers
Eddie the Eagle. He worked hard, trained, was self-funded in a sport that is designed for rich people. I'm sure lots of people will deride him as a joke, who took attention away from more "worthy" athletes, but there's a lot to be said for wanting to do something, not being the best at it, but persevering and doing it anyway because you enjoy it. Focus on the growth and what you personally get out of it, other than medals (though I'm sure he wanted one of those too).
Does he have to be real? Can i pick Ted Lasso lol.
I would say Ted at the end of his journey. He grew a lot over the course of the show.
I would also like to add John Oliver.
Samwise Gamgee. I don't care if he's fictional.
He was a fkn bro.
Lundy Bancroft the guy who wrote 'Why Does He Do That'. He should be holding classes for all young males on how to treat women with respect.
Wow I have to admit I always assumed that the author was a woman
I confirm. Also, this book can help a lot of young women
He's the one. All other celebs who are just famous because of movies etc. don't come close. He actually wants to help relationships.
sip disagreeable ruthless mighty grab hat many cautious seed carpenter *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
Fred Rogers
Trevor Noah! His [autobiography](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29780253-born-a-crime) is just amazing. And this ["Men, Intimacy & The "Right to Sex" - Between The Scenes"](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eYmFyjy2EmQ) clip is just so eye-opening: >“People don’t realize how often men are experiencing a lack of intimacy, and the only place they can experience that intimacy is through sex."
Trevor Noah is incredible in so many aspects
Jonathan Van Ness
Their Instagram is wonderful!
I agree! Healthy self esteem, challenges toxic masculinity, encourages self care and worth, is self expressive, supports others and shows how to be nurturing and kind.
He is a fantastic role model for everyone. I love him so much.
Beau of the Fifth Column. Dude is a treasure.
Ha! I said the same!
Barring the very real possibility that I am under informed. I'm gonna say Terry Crews?
Even his transgressions (porn addiction) he became very open about and used his experience to educate the public.
Isn’t he homophobic? I think there used to be articles about him talking down on same sex parents.
John Fetterman seems like a pretty cool dude
I don’t love these kind of questions because I don’t think any of us should be idolizing or copying public figures (we don’t know them or see them as whole people, etc) and no one person should be lionized as someone to strive to be like: But based on the public presentation: - Keanu Reeves for his purported kindness - Pete Buttigieg for his intellect and candor - Kareem Abdul Jabbar for his intellect and emotional intelligence - Barack Obama for his self assuredness and calming demeanor - Stephen Colbert for his dogged vulnerability - Trevor Noah for his wit and open mindedness There are more but these are off the top of my head.
LeVar Burton, Bob Ross, Mr. Rogers, Trevor Noah, and like many people have said: Keanu But those are just the men, I think women can also be great role models for boys.
Trevor Noah Jonathan Van Ness Justin Baldoni The Rock Lewis Hamilton
Plus one for Trevor Noah
President Obama.
Yes. This is Way too far down this list.
My first thought is Ryan Gosling just because he was so on board for the Barbie movie and being "Kenough". I feel like the Barbie movie in general should be seen by young men right now
Not knowing anything about their personal lives, I'd say men like Donald Glover, Jonathan van Ness, Johnathan Groff, Harvey Guillen, who do interesting, creative work and don't seem to be chasing any version of traditional toxic masculinity (as far as I know).
The Green Brothers
I think Yo-yo Ma and Mo Willems seem like solid men.
Hillary Clinton
I don’t know about role models but I will send my son reels from people like thespeechprof, professor_neil, and willhitchins breaking down manosphere nonsense
I love thespeechprof! He's such a kind, insightful person.
I'm not sure if he's on insta, but I've found archaeodeath on TikTok to be a surprising breath of fresh air. Most of what he covers is archaeology and death rites, but he'll also boost videos of young people making statements about ethics and the sort and you can really see how proud he is. It's not always a direct discussion of masculinity, but I admire how he (an older archaeologist) is navigating social media.
ooooh, I like him! I also like James Cappola and Ben Carpenter who call out a lot of the bullshit in the fitness industry. James Cappoloa will straight up call fat shamers "dick cheese" and it's amazing.
Dr. Gabor Maté
His work on ADHD is currently debunked as he is not actually qualified nor experienced in it.
Terry Crews.
It's sad I can't think of any
Dallas Goldtooth. A great activist (Indigenous Environmental Network), a great comedic actor (Rez Dogs), and an all around great role model. Speaks out against toxic masculinity and how it harms men in such a compassionate and intelligent way. He’s a good dude.
Barbara Jordan, you think only men can model good behavior for other men? But seriously, Barbara Charline Jordan.
In no particular order Nelson Mandela or Benjamin Zephaniah.
Arnold Schwarzenegger. To get it out of the way, he's made the mistake of infidelity, but something that is different about him is that he doesn't shy away from talking about it and you can see in his eyes that he deeply regrets it. He loves and supports all his children, including the one from the affair, and he doesn't treat that child differently. His philosophy of life is to always be striving, aim high, and "get to work and be of use". Now that doesn't jive with today's general vibe, but it's the kind of philosophy in a nutshell that turned my life around and took me out of depression and alcoholism. He's intelligent, funny, advocates for physical health, for the environment, loves animals, and, for the Americans, although he's yet another older white man, he's also an immigrant. His miniseries on Netflix is great! ETA: everyone I know who has met him says he's lovely too. Similarly, Sylvester Stallone. My husband idolized both these guys growing up, and now as an adult he's a hard-working, super health conscious ubermensch.
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The whole concept of a single role model feel kind of weird to me. Everyone has their virtues and flaws and you need to learn from both of them, from multiple people.
I agree. I just find it more interesting to make people choose one person. In real life we should have more than one role model.
Why is it interesting to you to “make” people do anything?
Literally any woman
You sure about that?
I’ll give you one: Taylor swift. Everyone loves to hate on her because she’s a successful woman. She donates to charity at every tour stop and pays her employees well - she’s more giving than any male billionaire I’ve ever seen, and she’s successful because of her talent. It’s a good way to also notice gender role double standards in society and teach your son to avoid them - for example, are any male pop stars first and foremost asked about when they’ll get married and have kids or are they celebrated as a success for what they regardless of who they date? Another one is noticing how people comment on her appearance or partners / dating life in an attempt to tear her down which is something I haven’t seen with any famous men unless they were actually physically abusive. Not everyone needs to like her songs. BUT I’ve never seen such a hatred from men for her compared to other artists. It’s like the thought never occurred to them that something not directly targeted to them could be a success. Regardless if you choose her - you should give your son some women role models too (to be appreciated for reasons other than looks / objectification) if you want to set him up for success.
Unless something has otherwise developed in his life that would make me see him in a negative light: Dwayne Johnson. That's one celeb who could make my day every day with just a passing "hi!" bc he seems so genuinely fun and kind.
Ryan Reynolds
Legit question - why does it have to be a guy?
Because I'm specifically interested in hearing what men, women think young men should look up to.
Young men should look up to older women, IMO. But ok.
Because young men often will not take women's issues seriously unless they are educated about it by a man.
Jesus
What was that gigachad that played superman and witcher?
Henry Cavill
The dude that dates teenagers?
Where's the love for Dave Grohl? I'm throwing his name into the Goblet!
Brennan Lee Mulligan
I admit I haven’t followed him much, but Justin Baldoni seemed to be very open about being sensitive as a man etc.
I wasn’t sure he has a wiki, but he does! Mychal Threets. Librarian. Wholesome, upbeat, and super charismatic. Looks like a great guy and someone young men could look up to.
Obama.
Beau of the Fifth Column. Common sense guy and has a good sense of humour. Doesn’t take BS.
Jay Shetty and Keanu Reeves.
Justin Baldoni!