In early March, Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson revealed their coronavirus diagnoses, making them the first celebrities to come down with the virus.
They were in Australia, where Hanks was in pre-production for the upcoming Elvis Presley biopic, where he will play The King’s manager, Colonel Tom Parker.
After being diagnosed, the couple was isolated in a local hospital for three days before self-quarantining at their home in Australia.
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On March 11, 2020, Hanks wrote that he and Wilson “felt a bit tired, like we had colds, and some body aches. Rita had some chills that came and went. Slight fevers too,” but since then, we hadn’t heard exactly what their experience was like.
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During a recent interview with CBS This Morning, Wilson detailed her experience.
“I was very tired, I felt extremely achy, uncomfortable, didn’t want to be touched and then the fever started. Chills like I’ve never had before. Looking back I also realized that I was losing my sense of taste and smell, which I didn’t realize at the time,” she said.
She also was given chloroquine, a drug commonly used to treat malaria that is being used to treat COVID-19 patients.
Wilson spoke about her side effects from the drug, which she described as “extreme.”
She said, “I was completely nauseous and I had vertigo. I could not walk and my muscles felt very weak. I think people have to be very considerate about that drug, we don’t really know if it’s helpful in this case.”
Now, her husband is speaking out about his symptoms.
In an interview with Military Defense Radio, Hanks said he had “bad body aches” and felt “very fatigued,” so much so that he was “wiped” just a few minutes into a basic 30-minute exercise, which he usually does on a regular basis.
“Rita went through a tougher time than I did,” he added. “She had a much higher fever. She had lost her sense of taste and sense of smell. She got absolutely no joy from food for a better part of three weeks.”
Both are now back on American soil, fully recovered, and have said they will donate blood and plasma to help develop more treatment for patients diagnosed with COVID-19.
Hanks was even feeling well enough to “host” SNL At Home! See his monologue below.