Lost actor Daniel Dae Kim says he's tested positive for coronavirus

Lost and Hawaii Five-0 actor Daniel Dae Kim says he's tested positive for the novel coronavirus.

The 51-year-old Hawaii-based actor announced his diagnosis on his Twitter and Instagram feeds Thursday.

"Hi everyone, yesterday I was diagnosed with COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus," Kim wrote. "Looks like I’ll be ok, but I wanted share my journey with you in the hopes that you find it informative or helpful. Hope you all stay safe, calm, and above all, healthy ... Ready for a fight? I am."

Kim noted he had been filming on NBC's medical drama New Amsterdam in New York where he, ironically, played a doctor dealing with a flu pandemic. The production was shut down due to the outbreak. On the actor’s plane ride back to Hawaii, Kim began to experience symptoms — first a scratchy throat, and then, upon arriving home, a tightness in his chest, body aches, and a fever. He went to a drive-through testing clinic in Honolulu and found he tested positive. He says his symptoms have continued to improve and now he’s “close” to 100 percent. During the entire time he self-isolated aside from his trip to the drive-through. "To teenagers and millennials who think this is not serious, please know that it is," he said.

Kim joins celebrities such as Tom Hanks, Idris Elba, and Kristofer Hivju in battling COVID-19. "I guess it's nice to be mentioned in the same breath as Tom Hanks and Idris Elba," Kim dryly joked.

In recent days there's been some backlash as some celebrities have seemingly easily received coronavirus tests while others who are critically ill have been denied testing. "I never asked for or received special treatment from anyone," Kim noted. "Anyone who meets the qualifications to be tested should be."

The reveal comes as Kim's former Lost costar Evangeline Lilly has drawn headlines for seemingly refusing to change her routine during the outbreak. The actress posted on Instagram Thursday that its "business as usual" and she "just dropped her kids off at gymnastics camp" after they "washed their hands before going in." She then added “where we are right now feels a lot too close to Marshall Law [sic] for my comfort already, all in the name of a respiratory flu ... It’s unnerving .... Let’s be vigilant right now. And kind. Watchful and gracious — keeping a close eye on our leaders, making sure they don’t abuse this moment to steal away more freedoms and grab more power ... Some people value their lives over freedom, some people value freedom over their lives. We all make our choices."

In his video, Kim also remarked upon the rise in racist attacks against Asian people during the pandemic which originated last year in China.

"People have been asking me why I've been silent in the face of the blatant acts of racism against Asian people during this outbreak," he said. "The truth is there have been so many of them it's too heartbreaking to comment on all of them ... Randomly beating elderly, sometimes homeless Asian-Americans is cowardly, heartbreaking and inexcusable. Yes, I'm Asian, and yes, I have coronavirus, but I didn't get it from China, I got it in America. Despite what certain political leaders want to call it, I don't consider the place where it's from nearly as important as the people who are sick and dying."

On Wednesday, Vietnamese-born American actress Lana Condor (X-Men: Apocalpyse) called out President Trump for repeatedly calling COVID-19 the "Chinese Virus," even as documented racist attacks on Asian-Americans are reportedly on the rise.

Related content:

• Celebrities with coronavirus urge fans to stay safe
• Lana Condor accuses Trump of endangering Asians over coronavirus: 'You should be ashamed'
• Taylor Swift and Ariana Grande urge fans to take coronavirus seriously: 'Don't turn a blind eye'