Bryan Cranston Reveals Bout With COVID-19: “Keep Wearing The Damn Mask!”

Actor Bryan Cranston revealed today a recent bout with COVID-19, posting an Instagram video of himself donating his antibody-positive plasma for research and encouraging people to wear a mask.

The Breaking Bad and Broadway Network star says in the video (watch it below) that he had COVID-19 “a little while ago” and that he had very mild symptoms (“slight headache, tightness of chest and lost all taste and smell”).

In a message accompanying the video, Cranston writes:

Hi. About now you’re probably feeling a little tied down, restricting your mobility and like me, you’re tired of this!! Well, I just want to encourage you to have a little more patience. I was pretty strict in adhering to the protocols and still… I contracted the virus. Yep. it sounds daunting now that over 150,000 Americans are dead because of it. I was one of the lucky ones. Mild symptoms. I count my blessings and urge you to keep wearing the damn mask, keep washing your hands, and stay socially distant. We can prevail – but ONLY if we follow the rules together. Be well – Stay well. BC

In the serious but very funny video, Cranston documents a recent visit to UCLA Blood and Plasma Donation Center, where he donates the plasma for research into the possible treatment uses of coronavirus antibody-positive blood. The process, he says, takes about an hour, which Cranston passed by watching A Face in the Crowd starring Andy Griffith. “Oh yeah,” he says when the movie starts.

At the end of the video, a message appears that says, in part, “This is something you might be able to do too.” The onscreen message ends: “Don’t forget to wash your hands, social distance and wear a mask!”