Christopher Reeves Son William Lived Apart from His Family after He Was Orphaned

Late actor Christopher Reeve and Dana Morosini Reeve, had one child together, William Reeve. He's an exact copy of his late father and once tried his hand at acting.

Celebrity couple and actors Dana Morosini Reeve and Christopher Reeve had only one child while married. William Reeve, now-30, was destined to carry on his parent's legacy when he was born.

Even though he was an only child, William luckily had two older half-siblings. Alexandra and Matthew are his half-brother and sister from Christopher's relationship with Gae Exton.

BECOMING AN ORPHAN

After falling off a horse while riding during an equestrian competition in 1995, the "Superman" actor ended up paralyzed and living as a person with quadriplegia. He became an activist and advocated for spinal cord injury research.

The star and his wife also founded the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation. He spent nine years as a person with quadriplegia and sadly died at age 52 in 2004 from complications caused by an infected bedsore.

Christopher, Dana, and William Reeve at the screening of "House Of D" during the Tribeca Film Festival on May 7, 2004, in New York City | Photo: Matthew Peyton/Getty Images

At the time of his death, Christopher and Dana had been in a loving relationship for 12 years. William was just 12 when his dad died, and he was only three when his father became paralyzed, and that wasn't the only tragedy in his young life.

About two years after he lost his father, in 2006, William's mother passed away at age 44 after battling lung cancer. The star's son ended up living with childhood friends as he made his way through life.

Dana had made sure to set everything up for her son's wellbeing before she died. William had his half-siblings and other blood relatives, but his mother wanted him to stay with people he'd grown up with.

He ended up staying in Bedford, New York, with a local family who was already close to William. Speaking to The Mirror, a woman who lived in Dana's small-town praised her decision, saying it made sense for William to be with close friends with a child of a similar age.

GROWING UP AN ORPHAN

Even though he lost both of his parents when he was just welcoming teenagehood, William said he had a traditional upbringing. He was blessed to finish school and college.

Dana's son also got to pursue the career he always dreamt of. When he's not doing that, he makes a point of paying tribute to his famous parent's spirit of generosity and philanthropy.

WILLIAM'S WORK HISTORY

In 2014, William had degrees in English and American literature from Vermont's Middlebury College. After months of graduating, he got himself a job as a reporter with ESPN.

Before then, he worked as a production assistant at "Good Morning America." From early 2015, he served as a member of the SportsCenter team, being hired as a trio with social media guru Sarina Morale and comedian Reese Waters.

Dana's son also got to host weekly segments for the hockey show for MSG Network. The sport was something he'd loved as a child, and Christopher reportedly attended one of his hockey games the day before he died.

HIS CURRENT LIFE

William is now a grown man and the spitting image of his late father. Finding his path in life led him to a job where he got to travel the world and tell different people's stories.

As a journalist, broadcaster, and activist, Christopher's son has had the pleasure of reporting from places like Arizona, Italy, Tennessee, Maine, and much more! He felt his parents would be proud of him.

Reports state that he currently works as a reporter for ABC News. He often shares updates on his life on his Instagram account, where his fans get to see what he's up to.

CONNECTING WITH CHRISTOPHER

In a June 2021 piece for "Good Morning America (GMA)," William shared a story about how obsessed he was with gray whales as a child. He watched a National Geographic documentary about them over and over.

The documentary covered how the whales would migrate for a 5,000-mile migration from cold waters near Alaska to the lagoons of Baja, Mexico. The host of the special was William's father, whom he idolized.

A young William dreamt of seeing the whales with his father, but he never did. Being paralyzed meant Christopher's son never got to do everyday father-son things like playing catch or learning about the birds and the bees.

However, even though William never got to spend Father's Day with the actor for 17 years after his death, he did pay tribute to him this year. The star's son went to see the whales in Alaska and said:

"[I] felt dad was with me.”

HONORING REEVE

In his GMA piece, William also opened up about what he thought honoring his father meant. He explained that he thought it meant following roads Christopher would've wanted him to go down.

Or making up for the actor's thwarted dreams or living his life as his father's proxy. William only learned at the age of 29 that the ultimate tribute for his parents was in finding out who he was and being just that.

WILLIAM ONCE PURSUED ACTING

While all of Christopher's children have been in some way related to the film industry, William once chose to pursue acting like him. He made his first TV debut in 1997 while his father was alive.

The number 52 had a meaning for William [Reeve] – it’s the age Christopher [Reeve]died at.

In 2004, he appeared on "The Brooke Ellison Story," which was directed by his father. William did voice-over work on 2006's animated feature "Everyone's Hero," also co-directed with Christopher before his death.

KEEPING THE LEGACY ALIVE

Besides his successful career, William also serves as an ambassador for his parents' foundation. He and his siblings work together on raising awareness on the issues that Christopher and Dana were devoted to fixing.

In 2016, William ran and finished the New York City Marathon in honor of his late parents and raised around $42,000. He revealed that the fundraising goal for Team Reeve in 2021 was $52,000.

The number 52 had a meaning for William – it's the age Christopher died at. The broadcaster wanted the significant number to remind him why he ran every time he checked his fundraising status.

ABOUT CHRISTOPHER REEVE

The late actor was born Christopher D'Olier Reeve in New York City on September 25, 1952. Before pursuing an acting career, he studied at New York's Julliard School and Cornell University.

He began his career in the Broadway play "A Matter of Gravity" and on the soap opera "Love of Life." It wasn't long until he finally got the opportunity to star in a significant production in "Superman."

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