Ryan Reynolds' father, Jim Reynolds passed away on Sunday, October 25. He was 74-years-old and had suffered from Parkinson's disease.

The Green Lantern actor had remained quiet about his recent loss, until yesterday, when he took to Twitter to post his first public statement about his dad's death.

"RIP Pops. James C. Reynolds. 1941-2015," Ryan wrote as the caption to a photo a baby picture of himself being carried by his dad and urging followers to support the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research.

According to CBC News, the actor has been open about his father’s struggled with Parkinson’s disease for 20 years, and even particpated in the 2008 New York Marathon to raise money and awareness. In an essay published with The Huffington Post, titled "Why I'm Running the New York City Marathon”, he recounted that "in a moment of extremely poor judgment, I offered to do something big for him." Adding: "I offered to compete in the New York City Marathon. Which was, well... dumb. I am not a runner. I am a running joke."

In a 2014 interview on the Today Show, which you can watch below, Reynolds explained how his father told him and his family about his diagnosis, saying, "I have a slightly different, weird, strange story about that because my father really hasn't ever said he has Parkinson's disease...He's in his 70s. He comes from a pretty prideful generation, and he doesn't really talk about it too much. But, he's maybe said it once or twice out loud."

He further stated that, "It kind of galvanized everybody else, to sort of seek resources, and for us, it's in a strange way, it's really kind of brought us together."

Tags
Ryan Reynolds, Parkinson's disease