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Isabel Lucas 'Opted Out' Of Mandatory COVID-19 Test On Bosch & Rockit Film Set

The 'Home and Away' and 'Transformers' actress made the claim despite producers saying all cast and crew had to comply with safety guidelines.
Isabel Lucas attends the Australian Fashion Laureate 2019 in Sydney. She says she didn't get tested for the coronavirus while filming 'Bosch & Rockit' last month.
Don Arnold via Getty Images
Isabel Lucas attends the Australian Fashion Laureate 2019 in Sydney. She says she didn't get tested for the coronavirus while filming 'Bosch & Rockit' last month.

Isabel Lucas has said she “opted out” of getting a COVID-19 test while filming the movie ‘Bosch & Rockit’ in Australia’s Byron Bay last month, despite producers saying being tested for the coronavirus was mandatory for all on set.

Speaking on the American health and well-being podcast “Alfa Vedic”, the actress, known for her roles on ‘Home and Away’ and ‘Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen’, said her “immune system has just become so solid” and she hasn’t been sick in the last “five or six years”.

“I gave my duty of care of what I could offer to respect everyone’s health and maintain my own health, and I shared that, and I opted out of doing the COVID test,” she said of her time on set.

“Everyone was really respectful and really honouring of, like, how to maintain health while this very tricky time is underway. But I needed to do that. I felt like it was quite an understanding, relaxed group of people.”

Isabel Lucas said on the "Alfa Vedic" podcast that she "opted out" of getting a COVID-19 test while filming the movie ‘Bosch & Rockit’ in Australia’s Byron Bay last month.
Alfa Vedic
Isabel Lucas said on the "Alfa Vedic" podcast that she "opted out" of getting a COVID-19 test while filming the movie ‘Bosch & Rockit’ in Australia’s Byron Bay last month.

The 35-year-old explained her strong health in the past few years was due to her lifestyle and diet, and that people were wearing masks on the set of the movie that also stars Luke Hemsworth.

“I’m actually trying to recall the last time I was sick, and it was about five or six years ago. I think my immune system has just become so solid from my way of life, how I eat and live and think,” she said.

“It was a really beautiful experience all up, even though people were wearing masks most of the time and adhering to those rules.”

However, producers said Isabel’s statement is “inconsistent” with their “understanding that she had complied with the COVID-Safe guidelines adopted by the production”.

“Every cast and crew member was required to sign an acknowledgement that they would adhere to the COVID-Safe guidelines adopted by the production, which included an acknowledgement that they had been COVID-tested prior to principal photography,” Black Pearl Productions said in a statement to The Brisbane Times.

The production company also said there was “a COVID safety officer and a nurse on set each day, temperature screening for all cast and crew as they arrived on set, and the wearing of face masks”.

However, the producers did not elaborate on what protocols were in place to determine whether people had been tested.

Isabel Lucas attends the NGV Gala on November 30, 2019, in Melbourne. She says her good health made her feel that a coronavirus test was unneeded.
Graham Denholm via Getty Images
Isabel Lucas attends the NGV Gala on November 30, 2019, in Melbourne. She says her good health made her feel that a coronavirus test was unneeded.

Isabel is well known for playing Tasha Andrews in Australian soap ‘Home and Away’ from 2003 to 2006. She also portrayed Alice Larson in the 2009 film ‘Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen’.

In April, she was dropped as an ambassador for girls’ rights by charity Plan International Australia after she said she “didn’t trust the path” of vaccination and promoted alternatively medicines to treat COVID-19.

Isabel Lucas and Black Pearl Productions didn’t immediately respond to HuffPost Australia’s request for comment.

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