Hollywood star Ryan Reynolds delivered a virtual commencement speech to the class of 2020 from his alma mater, Kitsilano Secondary School in Vancouver, and gifted every student a pizza from his favourite local pizza place, as the novel coronavirus prevented graduating students from donning their cap.

The Vancouver-born actor, who graduated from the West Side secondary school in 1994, uploaded an inspiring speech on YouTube over the weekend for the class of 2020. “If I can pass on this one little chestnut of wisdom, it's something that you might want to start if you're not already doing it.

Totally up to you, no pressure but one thing that's worked for me is practicing some form of compassion every day whether it's for yourself or someone, especially for someone else, is good,” Reynolds said in the video.

The actor encouraged students to be empathetic. "Some of you may consider me successful. I don't know, some of you may have seen ‘Green Lantern'. But I'll tell you this -- empathy has gotten me so much farther in not only in my life but in my career… To my surprise, (empathy) has made me money, friends, priceless memories.

“It's allowed me to fully accept and provide love. It's helped me recognise the mistakes I've made and learn from them. And above all, it made me happy. And it's something I'll probably be working on my whole life," he added.

The video ended with congratulatory message for the graduating class, as Reynolds announced that "every grad gets one large pizza on me” from his favourite local pizza shop, Nat's Pizzeria.