Leader of the free world Donald Trump reportedly misunderstood the word “discharged”, so assumed that Tom Hanks and wife Rita Wilson had died from coronavirus. Hanks and Wilson were released from hospital on the Gold Coast this week after being diagnosed with COVID-19, and currently remain in self-isolation.
The White House had to inform the President that Tom and Rita were actually quite well, and that the word “discharge” actually means “to tell (someone) officially that they can leave a place or situation.” An Australian-based US embassy official then had to further clarify with Australian health authorities that Hanks and his wife were actually alive.
It was reported that the White House had to quickly stop Trump from publicly tweeting his condolences to the Hanks family after misunderstanding the word “discharged.”
Tom and Rita contracted the virus while Hanks was shooting Baz Luhrmann’s upcoming Elvis Presley biopic in the Gold Coast. “We felt a bit tired, like we had colds, and some body aches,” Hanks wrote online, announcing his diagnosis. “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.”
Hanks’ sister Sandra has told press that, “Tom and Rita are doing very well and continue to recover. Their recovery is very much on course for healthy adults with this virus. They are feeling better each day.”
The production of Luhrmann’s Elvis biopic has been postponed indefinitely since Hanks’ diagnosis, making it just another in a long line of films pushed around due to COVID-19.
Check out Tom Hanks’ latest Instagram post below, proving that the actor is very much alive and as well as can be.
