Both Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson have tested positive for the deadly coronavirus while out in Australia.
Hanks, 63, confirmed the news on his Instagram page last night after both himself and Wilson, also 63, were displaying flu-like symptoms.
The Forrest Gump star wrote that both himself and his wife were “a bit tired, like we had colds, and some body aches”, as well as “slight fevers”.
Wilson also suffered from “chills, that came and went”.
The pair were tested for Covid-19 in a hospital on the Gold Coast, with Hanks filming for Baz Lurrman’s currently unnamed Elvis Presley biopic, and Wilson touring the country.
Currently, the NHS website lists the symptoms of coronavirus as “a dry cough, a high temperature and a shortness of breath”, however, the website does add that Covid-19 does share similar symptoms to other more common illnesses, such as colds and seasonal flu.
While it is not known when Hanks and Wilson entered Australia, the pair were first spotted by a fan in Queensland on the February 29.
During their time in the country, the pair have visited The Emporium Hotel in Brisbane, the North Bondi RSL and the Sydney Opera House.
The Sydney Harbour, Bondi Beach and Channel Nine’s Today Extra studio were also visited by either Hanks or Wilson.
The premier of Queensland, Annastacia Palaszczuk, has since said that people who came into contact with the pair will now need to self-isolate.
“Tom has been having a wonderful time on the Gold Coast and we are so lucky to have Tom in Queensland,” she said.
“But what it is, is people who have come in very close contact with him in recent days [our] experts will now work very closely with him with Baz [Luhrmann] and all the cast the crew and then they will isolate those people who have been in that close proximity.
“From what the chief health officer has told me it’s over 15 minutes of being in very close contact, so a selfie wouldn’t count as that.”
She added: “I’m very confident with the physicians that we have that will be treating Tom and his wife and like I said we wish them all the very best for a speedy recovery.”
Australia currently has 156 cases of coronavirus. Upon news of Hanks’s diagnosis, Lurhmann has halted production on the film.
The virus has now been declared a pandemic by the World Health Organisation.
The Republic of Ireland is now in lockdown, with schools, colleges and other public facilities closed until March 29 in a bid to stop Covid-19 from spreading.
