If you want to see “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga” this past weekend, you might have noticed a familiar face. No, not Anya Taylor-Joy or Chris Hemsworth. We’re talking about Quaden Bayles.
Quaden went viral a few years ago after his mom, Yarraka Bayles, posted a gut wrenching video showing how her young son was crying in anguish and begging for a rope to end his life—all due to being bullied for his dwarfism. Her hope was that it might educate others about cruelty and discrimination.
Millions of hearts broke for Quaden worldwide, and he received a huge amount of support, including from celebrities like Hugh Jackman, Mark Hamill and Jeffrey Dean Morgan.
George Miller, director of “Furiosa” and “Mad Max: Fury Road,” would later offer Quaden an extra role in his film “Three Thousand Years of Longing,” released back in 2022. That would be Quaden’s first taste of fun costumes and red carpet movie premieres…but certainly not his last.
Cut to May 23rd, 2024, and Quaden plays a badass war boy on “Furiosa,” and has been getting high praise for his work on it.
“I loved his role in the move. He made it more enjoyable,” one fan wrote.
Another added, “was a brilliant film…he was great.”
Yarraka shared a photo of her son smiling next to Taylor-Joy on set and in full makeup. What an amazing 180.
“I always say that the best revenge is success and now you dear Quaden are proving this to be true.Where are those bullies now? Watching you in the cinema and hopefully regretting their actions. Go you Quaden! You are a superstar buddy,” one person commented on Facebook.
In a perfect world, we wouldn’t have bullies. But, sadly, we do. As we can see here though, people have the collective power to help turn someone’s life around. When someone is being treated unfairly, all it might take is one gesture of compassion to start a chain reaction that helps that person heal and feel a little less alone. It’s nice to be reminded that compassion is just as contagious as cruelty.