GOLD COAST • Hollywood mega-star Tom Hanks and his singer-songwriter wife have tested positive for the coronavirus in Australia, forcing them into hospital isolation and leaving the authorities to trace hundreds of contacts at their concerts and film sets.
Hanks and Rita Wilson, both 63, are being monitored at the Gold Coast University Hospital, where they were "in a stable condition", according to Queensland state health officials.
Hanks revealed yesterday the shock diagnoses in a message that informed fans they had felt slightly ill and wanted to get tested to "play things right". Hanks is the first major Hollywood star to publicly state that he has the virus.
The multi-Oscar winner was in the Gold Coast for pre-production of an Elvis Presley biopic by Australian director Baz Luhrmann, and Wilson had played gigs at the Sydney Opera House and in Brisbane.
Opera House staff told the Agence France-Presse they were helping the authorities track "approximately 207 people" who "may have been in contact with the couple" at the concert last Saturday.
The famed building has received additional "on-site cleaning with hospital-grade disinfectant", a spokesman said, adding that tours and performances would continue.
Production on Hank's Elvis film - in which he was set to play the legendary singer's longtime manager, Colonel Tom Parker - has been suspended, and actors and crew are also being tested.
Hanks had earlier posted on Instagram: "Hello folks, Rita and I are down here in Australia. We felt a bit tired, like we had colds, and some body aches.
"To play things right, as is needed in the world right now, we were tested for the coronavirus, and were found to be positive," the Saving Private Ryan star said.
"We Hanks will be tested, observed and isolated for as long as public health and safety requires," he added.
"We'll keep the world posted and updated," he added, along with a photo of a surgical glove placed inside a biohazard trash bag.
In a video message, the Hanks' son Chet said: "I just got off the phone with them. They both are fine; they're not even that sick."
During the visit to Australia's largest city, the couple also visited Bondi Beach. It is unknown whether they had contracted the virus by that point.
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
