Actor Tom Hanks said on Wednesday that he and his wife, Rita Wilson, have tested positive for the coronavirus.
Mr. Hanks and Ms. Wilson, both 63, are in Australia, where he was set to film a movie about the life of Elvis Presley. “We felt a bit tired, like we had colds, and some body aches,” the Academy Award-winning actor said in a statement. “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.”
He added that he and Ms. Wilson “will be tested, observed and isolated for as long as public health and safety requires.”
In the movie he was in Australia to film, Mr. Hanks is playing the role of Colonel Tom Parker, Presley’s eccentric manager, who groomed the famous singer for stardom in the 1950s.
Mr. Hanks is by far the most prominent entertainment figure to say he has the virus and, by going public with the information, instantly becomes the face of an outbreak that has cascaded around the globe.
In the United States, the number of cases has surpassed 1,150, and warnings about the safety of mass gatherings has begun to have tangible effects in the entertainment world. Many talk shows including “The Ellen DeGeneres Show,” will begin taping without a studio audience.