Tom Hanks says his ‘bones felt like they were made out soda crackers’ when he had coronavirus

‘Every time I moved around, I felt like something was cracking inside me,’ actor says

Sabrina Barr
Wednesday 15 July 2020 12:34 BST
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Tom Hanks says his 'bones felt like they were made out of soda crackers' when he had Covid-19

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Tom Hanks has described the discomfort he experienced while suffering from the coronavirus, saying that his bones felt as though they were as fragile as “soda crackers”.

In March, Hanks and his wife, actor and producer Rita Wilson, tested positive for Covid-19 while in Australia, where Hanks was filming Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis Presley biopic.

The couple were promptly hospitalised, with their symptoms easing in under two weeks.

Having spoken frequently about the ordeal he and Wilson experienced, Hanks recently made an appearance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert where he spoke about his symptoms in great detail.

The Oscar-winning actor explained that he and his wife suffered “very different” symptoms, with Wilson experiencing loss of taste and smell “before that was known to be a thing”.

For Hanks, one of the main ways Covid-19 affected him was through body aches.

“I had bones that felt like they were made out of soda crackers. Every time I moved around, I felt like something was cracking inside me,” the 64-year-old said.

Hanks told Stephen Colbert that he had a “really sore butt”, which he compared to the pain that he would experience if his older brother were to punch him repeatedly in the buttocks.

He added that along with the “bone-crushing fatigue”, his and Wilson’s coronavirus symptoms lasted for approximately eight to nine days.

The Forrest Gump actor recalled a time during his stay in hospital in Australia when he decided to do some stretches on the floor of his room “just to bend a little bit”.

“I almost passed out down on the floor,” Hanks said, explaining he was only able to do stretches for around seven minutes . “I pulled myself up in the bed, I felt really horrible.”

The Hollywood star recently spoke out against people who choose not to wear masks amid the pandemic, stating: “It is literally the least you can do.”

“I mean, when you drive a car, you’ve got to obey speed limits, you’ve got to use your turn signals, you’ve got to avoid hitting pedestrians. If you can’t do those three things, you shouldn’t be driving a car,” he said.

“If you can’t wear a mask and wash your hands and social distance, I’ve got no respect for you, man. I don’t buy your argument.”

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