Rita Wilson Had 'Extreme Side Effects' From Unproven Coronavirus Drug Touted By Trump

Actor Rita Wilson said she had “extreme side effects” from taking the malaria drug chloroquine when she was sick with the coronavirus, and warned people “to be very considerate” when deciding to use the medication for COVID-19.

President Donald Trump has repeatedly touted chloroquine as a treatment for the illness caused by the virus, despite a lack of medical evidence. The drug isn’t approved against the coronavirus, but doctors can prescribe it.

“I don’t know if the drug worked or it was just time for the fever to break, but my fever did break, but the chloroquine had such extreme side effects,” Wilson told CBS’ Gayle King on Tuesday in her first interview since she and husband Tom Hanks tested positive for the virus.

The couple fell ill last month while Hanks was filming director Baz Luhrmann’s upcoming Elvis Presley movie in Australia. They have since recovered from COVID-19 and have returned to the U.S.

“I was completely nauseous and I had vertigo,” Wilson recalled. “I could not walk and my muscles felt very weak. I think people have to be very considerate about that drug. We don’t really know if it’s helpful in this case.”

Wilson remembered feeling “very tired,” “extremely achy” and “uncomfortable” following her diagnosis, with chills “like I’ve never had before,” a loss of her senses of taste and smell, and a high fever.

Hanks, who hosted the first stay-at-home edition of “Saturday Night Live” over the weekend, had milder symptoms, she said, and he didn’t lose his senses or have such a high fever.

The couple took “the same time” to overcome the virus, however. Wilson said they believed they both contracted the illness at the same time from the same person, although they don’t know when or where.

Wilson also revealed that the couple donated blood as part of a study and were waiting to hear if their antibodies will be helpful in creating a vaccine.

Check out the full interview here: