Idris Elba denies Cardi B conspiracy theory that celebs are being paid to say they have coronavirus
25 March 2020, 17:16
Cardi B questioned why so many celebrities had been diagnosed with coronavirus.
Idris Elba has denied the coronavirus conspiracy theory that celebrities are being paid to say they have the virus after Cardi B questioned why so many stars happened to have access to tests on Instagram Live.
Last week, people started questioning how celebrities are managing to get tested for coronavirus despite having no symptoms, after Tom Hanks and Idris Elba confirmed that they tested positive for coronavirus. Meanwhile, regular people and even healthcare professionals are struggling to get tested. "Sounded like a motherfucking Flat Tummy Tea commercial and shit," Cardi said on Instagram.
READ MORE: 21 UK lockdown memes following Boris Johnson's new coronavirus statement
Idris, whose wife Sabrina Dhowre Elba has also tested positive for the virus, denied there was any kind of conspiracy, calling the claims "bullshit" but not directly saying Cardi's name. "I think that the negativity around test-shaming is counterproductive," Idris explained on Instagram.
"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 like absolute bullshit. Such stupidness.
"People wanna spread that as if it's news. That’s stupid. 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."
Cardi hasn't responded to Idris' video just yet but the rapper has been consistently (and hilariously) speaking about coronavirus while in isolation. A clip from a video where she says "coronavirus" has even been made into a viral song that has topped the iTunes Charts.
For more information and guidelines on coronavirus, read the NHS advice here.
