Acclaimed American actor Tom Hanks announced today, March 12, that he and his wife, Rita Wilson, have been diagnosed with the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) while traveling in Australia.
Hanks was in Gold Coast, Queensland to work with director Baz Luhrmann on pre-production for a film about Elvis Presley, Warner Bros. confirmed.
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Hello, folks. Rita and I are down here in Australia. We felt a bit tired, like we had colds, and some body aches. Rita had some chills that came and went. Slight fevers too. To play things right, as is needed in the world right now, we were tested for the Coronavirus, and were found to be positive. Well, now. What to do next? The Medical Officials have protocols that must be followed. We Hanks’ will be tested, observed, and isolated for as long as public health and safety requires. Not much more to it than a one-day-at-a-time approach, no? We’ll keep the world posted and updated. Take care of yourselves! Hanx!
In a statement posted on social media, Hanks explained that he and his wife had relatively mild symptoms, and would follow the advice of health experts in the coming days.
We felt a bit tired, like we had colds, and some body aches. Rita had some chills that came and went. Slight fevers too,” Hanks wrote. “To play things right, as is needed in the world right now, we were tested for the Coronavirus, and were found to be positive.”
“We Hanks’ will be tested, observed, and isolated for as long as public health and safety requires,” he continued on Instagram. “We’ll keep the world posted and updated. Take care of yourselves!”
Meanwhile, Warner Bros. affirmed they “are working closely with the appropriate Australian health agencies to identify and contact anyone who may have come in direct contact with the individual.”
“The health and safety of our company members is always our top priority, and we are taking precautions to protect everyone who works on our productions around the world,” the statement concluded.