Advertisement

Idris Elba slams conspiracy theory celebs are paid to say they have coronavirus

March 16th 2020 - Actor Idris Elba has tested positive for the coronavirus. - File Photo by: zz/KGC-254/STAR MAX/IPx 2018 8/21/18 Idris Elba at the world premiere of "Yardie" held at the BFI Southbank Cinema. (London, England, UK)
Idris Elba has tested positive for the coronavirus. (AP)

Idris Elba has rubbished a “bulls***” cospiracy theory that celebrities are being paid to say they have coronavirus (COVID-19).

The Luther star previously released a statement saying he had tested positive for coronavirus and is currently in self-isolation wife Sabrina Dhowre Elba.

Elba said in a video posted on his Instagram stories: “This idea that someone like myself is gonna be paid to say I’ve got coronavirus? That’s absolute bulls***.

"Such stupidness. People wanna spread that as if it’s news. That’s stupid.

Latest coronavirus news, updates and advice

Live: Follow all the latest updates from the UK and around the world

Fact-checker: The number of COVID-19 cases in your local area

Explained: Symptoms, latest advice and how it compares to the flu

Sabrina Dhowre Elba, left, and Idris Elba attend the world premiere of "Cats" at Alice Tully Hall on Monday, Dec. 16, 2019, in New York. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP)
Idris Elba and wife Sabrina Dhowre Elba are in self-isolation. (AP)

“It’s the quickest way to get people sick because there’s no benefit to me and Sabrina sitting here saying we’ve got it if we ain’t got it. I don’t even understand the logic of that.”

The 47-year-old British actor and DJ has come under fire for revealing he had been tested for the virus, when many key workers in the UK have been unable to confirm if they have had the disease or not, due to a shortage of testing kits which are being reserved for the most serious and vulnerable cases.

Read more: Idris Elba praises Tom Hanks for 'transparency' over testing positive for COVID-19

It is believed Elba may have paid for a private test.

He said: "I think the debate about rich and poor and who’s getting it and who’s not, I think, is not a healthy debate.

"It’s like, I got a test but I also got Covid. Does that make me preferential? I don’t understand that.”

Actor Idris Elba teams up with Ford to launch the all-electric Mustang Mach-E SUV in Los Angeles, Calif. on Nov. 17, 2019. The automaker said in a news release that this is "the first time in Mustang’s 55-year history that we’ve expanded the stable." Xxx Hooper Fordmustangmache 007 Jpg F Usa Ca (Photo by Sandy Hooper, USA TODAY, USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Content Services, LLC/USA Today Network/Sipa USA)
Idris Elba has addressed conspiracy theories about COVID-19. (PA)

Elba added: "This isn’t a movie. I’m not an actor right now. I’m just a human being and I just happen to be in the public eye.

"So I want people to understand that this is very real.

"I don’t feel like I’m privileged because I got a test because I actually contracted it.”

Elba previously addressed another conspiracy theory which claimed black people were immune to coronavirus.