Almost a year later, the world is still battling the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, amid the spike that appears to be the second wave of the infectious disease around the globe, Arrow star Stephen Amell has revealed that he, too, contracted the virus a while back.
As of today, 44 million people have tested positive for the novel coronavirus worldwide. While more than one million patients have tragically passed away due to respiratory failure and other conditions attributed to the sickness, most folks begin to recover after a couple of weeks, though the period is as gruesome as it is laborious.
The actor behind the green-hooded vigilante of Star City on The CW experienced something similar, and it seems that he tested positive for the virus despite following protocols such as wearing a mask and social distancing. As he explained on the Inside of You podcast:
“I started to notice something on a Monday but didn’t have a test result. Phoned up the people at CTEH, had them come to my apartment, test me. Came back positive the following Wednesday, got tested again, came back positive again. But, frankly, at that point I didn’t need a second positive test because those first couple of days, just really… they just, they just sucked.”
What’s interesting, though, is that Amell apparently underwent about 40 “negative tests” which boosted his confidence about not catching the virus. He also touched on the subject of why it’s important to take this seriously and stay informed, saying:
“My anxiety came from the idea that I would be letting hundreds of people down. I didn’t have anxiety about the fact that I would give it to other people, which again I possibly did, which is unsettling in and of itself. But you have to understand that because of this anxiety, I have actively, actively, actively tried to avoid contracting this virus. And guess what? I f****** got it anyway. So be smart.”
I think we can all relate to Amell’s words about the anxiety that comes with living through this outbreak. After all, we’re not quite out of the woods yet. And based on what the experts say, many people could be asymptomatic carriers, which is why it’s reasonable to assume that you may be a spreader if you’ve been exposed to high risk environments.
In any event, we’re glad that the Arrow star has put this past him and is feeling better now.