These 'Avengers' stars are heroes in real life

When it comes to saving the world from evil, the stars of the Avengers movies have got things covered. But you may not realize that these actors have a heroic side even after the cameras stop rolling. Between filming hit movies, these celebs devote their time to causes near and dear to their hearts — helping those in need and raising awareness for important issues around the globe.

Robert Downey Jr. is one of Hollywood’s highest-paid actors, and he uses his status for good — working to raise money for the rare genetic disease known as ROHHAD (rapid-onset obesity with hypothalamic dysregulation, hypoventilation and autonomic dysregulation). Earlier this year he participated in the “muddy puddle challenge,” which dares people to jump in the muddiest puddle they can find, record it and share on social media. He nominated fellow stars Gwyneth Paltrow, Samuel L. Jackson and Mark Ruffalo, among others, to also complete the challenge.

One pressing issue in the news recently was voter turnout, and Zoe Saldana decided to focus her attention on getting fellow members of the Latinx community to the polls this past Election Day. Teaming up with other Hollywood heavy hitters Eva Longoria, America Ferrera, Gina Rodriguez and Rosario Dawson, Saldana hit the streets of Miami to encourage people to exercise their right to vote. She told the Hollywood Reporter, “I think it is our duty to find our similarities, which are our great strengths, bind them together and use them as one voice to speak to the American public about the importance of representation.”

Chris Pratt, star of the Jurassic Park franchise, used his fame for good when it was brought to his attention on Instagram that his request for people to “turn up the volume and not just read the subtitles” was making his posts inaccessible to a large number of his fans who suffer from a hearing disability. It turns out almost 38 million Americans live with a hearing disability. By pointing this out to his almost 22 million followers and asking them to use the hashtag #CCinstaNow on their posts to encourage Instagram to add a captioning feature, he’s raising awareness of this important issue to a whole new audience.

Chadwick Boseman also took time out from his busy moviemaking schedule to make the rounds at a hospital treating kids with cancer. He posted about his support of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital after he helped a girl named Mady celebrate her birthday in Memphis. He also met with another young Avengers fan, Hayden, who asked Boseman to say hi to some of his co-stars for him.

These are just some of the amazing ways the stars of one of the most popular movie franchises in history have used their fame for turning our attention to the serious issues around us, and further proof that not all superheroes wear capes.

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