Written by: Haley Cinotto
Beloved Hollywood star, Tom Hanks, 63, announced on Wednesday that he and his actress wife, Rita Wilson, 63, both tested positive for coronavirus while in Australia. The two-time Oscar winner, was set to begin production on an untitled film about the life of Elvis Presley. In the movie, Hanks is playing the role of Colonel Tom Parker, Presley’s eccentric manager, who groomed the famous singer for stardom in the 1950s.
Hanks logged onto Instagram to confirm that he and his wife have come down with symptoms resembling a cold, as well as body aches and slight fevers. Everyone who came in close contact with them will self-quarantine, and Hanks and Wilson will be closely monitoring during the coming weeks.
“To play things right, as is needed in the world right now, we were tested for the Coronavirus, and were found to be positive,” Hanks wrote.
The couple’s son, Chet Hanks, confirmed in a video posted to his Instagram account, “Yeah, it’s true, my parents got coronavirus. Crazy.” Chet stated his parents were doing ‘OK’, before emphasizing that neither was “tripping” and that they weren’t “even that sick,” but simply going through all the necessary precautions.
Tom Hanks is by far the most notable celebrity to announce he has the virus. Now, by going public with the information, he has instantly become the face of an outbreak that has taken over the globe.
As of Wednesday morning, Australia has had 112 confirmed cases of COVID-19, including three deaths. In the U.S., as of right now, there are 1,050 cases of the coronavirus, but health experts have said the magnitude of the outbreak is likely much greater than that. At least 29 people have died in California, Florida, New Jersey, South Dakota and Washington.
At the same time of Hanks and Wilson’s COVID-19 diagnosis announcement, Trump restricted most travel from Europe for 30 days, and the NBA suspended its season indefinitely.
Photo: Getty/Jeff Kravitz
