First Woody Harrelson, then Tim Robbins, and now Tilda Swinton—death may indeed come in threes for their respective public images after hard stances are being taken by each regarding on-set Covid restrictions.
During the 62-year-old The Eternal Daughter actor’s keynote appearance at South by Southwest in Austin, Texas this week, the enigmatic Oscar winner, like Harrelson before her, may have overshared on the Covid topic, as Variety reports.
What began as an innocent comment about her excitement that audience members were now able to shed their masks quickly went turbulent, when Swinton boldly claimed, “I’m about to shoot a picture in Ireland, and I was told to wear a mask at all times, and I’m not.
“I’m not wearing a mask because I’m super healthy and I’ve had Covid so many times and I’m so full of antibodies … and I have faith,” she confidently told the crowd.
But here’s the thing: In January 2022, Swinton opened up about her symptoms of long Covid to W magazine. In the interview, she claims she was experiencing memory loss because of the virus and had to “work my brain.”
One Twitter user, Dr. Genevieve Estabrook, connected the contradiction between Swinton’s previous statements and those she made during her keynote.
“Tilda Swinton: I’m perfectly healthy after multiple COVID infections & refuse to wear a mask on set,” She wrote. “Also Tilda Swinton: I have long COVID & can’t remember my lines (or apparently, anything else)”
Tilda Swinton: I’m perfectly healthy after multiple COVID infections & refuse to wear a mask on set
Also Tilda Swinton: I have long COVID & can’t remember my lines (or apparently, anything else) pic.twitter.com/BhzHr0bk0e
— Dr. Genevieve Eastabrook MD FRCSC (she/her) (@placentadoc) March 14, 2023
Swinton is not the only celebrity to speak on film set mandates in recent weeks. In late February, Harrelson, while hosting Saturday Night Live, claimed the restrictions while making his new movie Champions were “rather absurd.”
Then, The Hudsucker Proxy star Robbins jumped to defend the 61-year-old fellow actor, adding that “it’s not fair to the crews” to make them wear a mask.
“I don’t have to wear the mask. Why should they? Why should they have to be vaccinated? How’s that not up to the individual? I shouldn’t be talking about this [expletive],” the Oscar winner rambled. “I don’t feel that we should have forced testing, forced masking and forced vaccination. That’s not a free country.”
In January, the Screen Actors Guild—American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA), as well as the Joint Policy Committee, agreed to extend COVID safety testing and protocols until March 31, 2023.
This includes mandatory vaccination, testing two days prior to employment, testing on a weekly basis during employment, and mandatory masking during all times except when an individual is eating, drinking, or when “job duties prevent them from doing so.”
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