COVID-19 survivor Bryan Cranston’s shout-out to Melbourne to mask up and do the right thing
Emmy-winning Breaking Bad star Bryan Cranston survived his own brush with COVID-19 and has this advice for Melburnians living in stage 4 lockdown.
Entertainment
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Oscar-nominated actor Bryan Cranston has a message for the locked-down people of Melbourne: do the right thing.
Cranston, who won four Emmy Awards for playing teacher turned drug lord Walter White in Breaking Bad, said he respected the strong stance taken by premier Dan Andrews and, as a coronavirus survivor himself, urged Victorians to stay the course.
“I will give kudos to your Government for being able to recognise when something is really necessary and for taking firm action to correct it and make it better,” Cranston said on hearing the city was in stage four lockdown.
“I hope all of you are well — wear your masks and lock down. When it eases up and you are able to go out, continue the social distancing, wash your hands and do the right thing. Being respectful is what it comes down to — not just to other people but to yourself.”
Los Angeles-based Cranston, who stars as a ringmaster in the new Disney kids’ film The One and Only Ivan, and his wife both contracted COVID-19 around the same time as Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson, who were in Australia at the time and are now fully recovered.
“They are friends of ours and we were talking to them about it while they were down in your country,” Cranston said.
“They actually suffered it worse than my wife and I did — we were very fortunate and had very mild symptoms and I didn’t think at the time that the world needed another celebrity do come out and say ‘hey, I had it too’ so I didn’t say anything.”
Cranston was urged by doctors to go public via an Instagram post when he donated plasma to help with treatment and research into the debilitating virus.
“I thought that’s a good reason to out myself and say, ‘I had it, I’m fine’, count my blessings and encourage those who had it and came through to please consider giving plasma to help others.”
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