A costumed Good Samaritan dressed as Spider-Man is earning praise online after traffic cameras caught him jumping out of his vehicle to help a man in a wheelchair navigate a busy Arkansas intersection.
The uplifting moment unfolded Tuesday in Jonesboro, shortly after 20-year-old Christopher Hellenthal said he finished his shift at a local trampoline park.
Hellenthal explained that he had worn the Spider-Man suit to work for a themed superhero day. “That morning we had a superhero day and so I brought it for the toddlers and they had a blast,” he said. After clocking out, he planned to drive around town in costume when he spotted a man in a wheelchair struggling to get across the roadway.
Seeing that the man might not make it across safely, Hellenthal said he reacted immediately. “I just got out real fast, and I just helped him along, adrenaline pumping through me,” he said, adding that he told the man, “Don’t worry, I got you,” before guiding him to safety and returning to his vehicle.
Christopher Hellenthal, 20, who is dressed in a Spider-Man costume, is seen in Jonesboro, Ark., helping a man in a wheelchair cross a busy intersection. (Jonesboro Police Department/TMX/AP)
For Hellenthal, the costume was not the reason he stepped in. “I would have done it with or without the suit,” he said.
The Jonesboro Police Department later posted the video on Facebook, where officers described Hellenthal as a “true superhero” for his quick act of kindness.
“We were able to spot this little web of kindness on our intersection cameras. Thank you, sir, for helping this gentleman reach his destination safely,” the department wrote.
Sally Smith, a police department spokesperson, told The Associated Press that “Not in my 7 years in the department have I witnessed this.”
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Hellenthal said he would have helped the man “with or without the suit.” (Jonesboro Police Department/TMX/AP)
Hellenthal, who lives in Lake City, east of Jonesboro, said he’s always been a Spider-Man fan. He told the AP that he even had the opportunity to meet the late Stan Lee, one of the character’s co-creators.
Packy Magel, a manager at Ultimate Air Trampoline Park who works with Hellenthal, said he recognized Hellenthal from the video despite his superhero getup.
The video ends with Hellenthal helping the man cross the intersection on Tuesday, July 21, 2026, in Jonesboro, Ark. (Jonesboro Police Department/TMX/AP)
It’s “very much like him to do something like that and very much like him to be still in costume,” Magel said to the AP.
