Idris Elba is slamming a conspiracy theory that celebrities have been paid to say they have coronavirus.

The actor, who tested positive for COVID-19 last week, took to Instagram Live to debunk the rumor that recently surfaced.

"I think the debate about rich and poor and who's getting it and who's not, I think, is not a healthy debate," Elba told his followers. "It's like, I got a test but I also got COVID. Does that make me preferential? I don't understand that."

"It shouldn't be about whether rich or poor gets it," he added. "I think that the negativity around test-shaming is counterproductive. I don't see what people get out of that. And also this idea that someone like myself is gonna be paid to say I've got coronavirus, that's absolute bullsh*t. Such stupidness."

"People wanna spread that as if it's news. That's stupid," he continued. "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 or we ain't got it. I don't even understand the logic of that."

Elba, whose wife Sabrina Dhowre, also tested positive, added that he's "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," the Hobbs & Shaw star explained. "I don't feel like I'm privileged because I got a test because I actually contracted it."

Elba previously explained that he decided to get tested after finding out that someone he had been in contact had tested positive.

Elba wrote on Twitter, "This morning I tested positive for Covid 19. I feel ok, I have no symptoms so far but have been isolated since I found out about my possible exposure to the virus. Stay home people and be pragmatic. I will keep you updated on how I’m doing 👊🏾👊🏾 No panic."

Meanwhile, Dhowre revealed she had also tested positive for coronavirus during her March 21 appearance on the first episode of Oprah Winfrey's new series, Oprah Talks COVID-19.

Tom Hanks, Rita Wilson, Colton Underwood and Andy Cohen are just some other Hollywood names who have tested positive for the flu-like virus. Drake and Kris Jenner, among others, also got tested but were not diagnosed with the virus.

For more celebs who have been tested for coronavirus, see below.



