The coronavirus pandemic has people around the world concerned about their health and well-being, celebrities included. Unfortunately, quite a few have still been diagnosed with the disease. That doesn’t mean, however, there have been misdiagnoses, and Daniel Radcliffe would know all about that. Last month, reports began circulating that the former Harry Potter star had become one of the first high-profile names to contract the virus. These stories later turned out to be false and, now, Radcliffe is opening up about the ordeal.
Daniel Radcliffe recently videoed into an episode of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, during which he discussed the reports. It turns out the actor was in the middle of hair and makeup for a play performance when he got an unusual – and honest – reaction from the makeup artist. But as crazy as the moment sounds, it wasn’t the weirdest situation for Radcliffe:
This was about three weeks ago probably now. I just went into hair and makeup before I was doing the play and the makeup artist said to me ‘You’ve got coronavirus!’ And I said ‘What?’ He had got a text from a niece who apparently just texted him saying to the effect of ‘That dude you’re working with, he’s got coronavirus.’ Very much a warning text being like you shouldn’t be working with him, he shouldn’t be going there at all. I’ve had various other weird stories made up about me throughout the years, but none as topical as this. So I kind of laughed it off and then I did a day of press the next day in which every interview was just me denying that I had coronavirus.
Having your makeup artist tell you have a serious disease is… unexpected, to say the least. Despite that, Daniel Radcliffe seems to have taken it in stride, as he can openly joke about it now. And let’s be honest, you would need a good sense of humor to be able to shrug off a situation like that.
With diagnoses seemingly increasing by the day, the fact that those reports gained traction are in no way surprising, even if they are inaccurate. When big-name actors like Tom Hanks and Idris Elba have had bouts with COVID-19, others are sure to get thrown into the mix.
Radcliffe also isn’t the only big name from the Wizarding World to have a coronavirus experience. Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling thinks she had the virus after having experienced symptoms for two weeks. She now believes she’s recovered, yet it’s important to mention that she was never formally tested for the virus.
It’s unfortunate that Daniel Radcliffe had to squash those kinds of rumors, but his statements did serve as a comfort to fans who were worried about their favorite wizard.
Keep it here at CinemaBlend for more TV and film updates related to the coronavirus.
