Tom Hanks and his wife Rita Wilson reveal they are in isolation after testing positive for coronavirus

12 March 2020, 07:17 | Updated: 12 March 2020, 11:33

Tom Hanks has said he will remain isolated for "as long as public health and safety requires" after contracting coronavirus.

Tom Hanks and his wife Rita Wilson have both tested positive for coronavirus.

The Hollywood actor took to Instagram on Wednesday, telling fans the couple had both started to feel unwell while he was filming in Australia.

He wrote: "Hello, folks. Rita and I are down here in Australia. We felt a bit tired, like we had colds, and some body aches.

"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."

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Hello, folks. Rita and I are down here in Australia. We felt a bit tired, like we had colds, and some body aches. 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. Well, now. What to do next? The Medical Officials have protocols that must be followed. We Hanks’ will be tested, observed, and isolated for as long as public health and safety requires. Not much more to it than a one-day-at-a-time approach, no? We’ll keep the world posted and updated. Take care of yourselves! Hanx!

A post shared by Tom Hanks (@tomhanks) on Mar 11, 2020 at 6:08pm PDT

63-year-old Tom went on to explain that he and his wife will be quarantined in order to stop it spreading to anyone else.

He continued: "Well, now. What to do next? The Medical Officials have protocols that must be followed.

"We Hanks' will be tested, observed, and isolated for as long as public health and safety requires. Not much more to it than a one-day-at-a-time approach, no?"

Tom Hanks and his wife Rita Wilson. Picture: PA Images

The couple are now in isolation in a Gold Coast hospital, as Tom added: "We'll keep the world posted and updated. Take care of yourselves!"

While Tom flew to Australia for the pre-production of Baz Luhrmann's untitled Elvis Presley feature film, Rita was thought to be touring the country.

In a video posted to Instagram, the couple’s son Chet, said he’d spoken to his parents who were doing fine.

“What’s up everyone, um, yeah it’s true my parents got coronavirus. Crazy,” he said.

“I just got off the phone with them, they both are fine, they’re not even that sick, they’re not worried about it, they’re not tripping, but they’re going through the necessary health precautions obviously.”

This comes after Warner Bros. issued a statement to Deadline which read: "We have been made aware that a company member from our Elvis feature film, which is currently in pre-production in The Gold Coast, Australia, has tested positive for COVID-19 (coronavirus).

"We are working closely with the appropriate Australian health agencies to identify and contact anyone who may have come in direct contact with the individual."

It added: "The health and safety of our company members is always our top priority, and we are taking precautions to protect everyone who works on our productions around the world. The individual who tested positive for COVID-19 is currently receiving treatment."