“Rita had some chills that came and went,” he continued. “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.” A representative for Hanks confirmed the news as shared on social media.
Hanks is the first American celebrity to publicly announce a diagnosis of the novel coronavirus. His statement was posted across platforms just minutes after President Trump addressed the growing severity of the pandemic, and around the same time the NBA announced it would be suspending its season due to a Utah Jazz player testing positive.
One of the most beloved actors in Hollywood, Hanks’s statement kept with his good-natured reputation. He also shared a photograph of a medical glove discarded in a trash can layered with a yellow biohazard liner, keeping with his social media theme of lost gloves.
