The COVID-19 coronavirus has had a profound impact on a lot of our everyday life, and even the entertainment industry is being profoundly impacted. One television series directly affected by the virus’ spread has been NeXt, an upcoming drama series set to air on FOX. Days ago, word first broke that a crew member on NeXt tested positive for the virus, and now a new report from Variety outlines the ramifications of that. According to the report, the crew member in question began showing symptoms as early as February 29th, but continued to be on the series’ Chicago set, coming into contact with multiple department heads in the process. Reportedly, the person then returned to the set on March 2nd, and continued to be physically involved with the production through March 4, before being hospitalized later that week.
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According to multiple crew members on the series, they were not made aware of potential exposure to the virus until March 9th. By that point, filming had already wrapped, and many of the crew members had begun to work on other productions. Crew members on the series were based in several cities outside of Chicago, including Los Angeles, New Orleans, and Atlanta. Fox and 20th Century Fox Television issued a memo about the situation on March 10th, after reportedly being contacted multiple times by crew members. The memo, from the office of Disney Television studios president Craig Hunegs, reads in part:
“We have been notified by the Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH) that a crew member on the NeXt production shooting in Chicago has tested positive for COVID-19 and is receiving treatment. The crew member is currently quarantined at a temporary residence in Chicago. The CDPH is working closely with us to identify and contact all individuals who came in direct contact with the crew member.
The CDPH advises “Patients” who get sick with COVID-19 develop mild to severe respiratory illness with symptoms of:
– Fever
– Cough
– Difficulty breathing
If you are having any of these symptoms please contact your medical provider. The CDC believes at this time that symptoms of COVID-19 may appear in as few as 2 days or as long as 14 days after exposure.”
neXt centers on the efforts of a Homeland Cybersecurity team to counter “a rogue AI with the ability to constantly improve itself”. The series stars John Slattery, Fernanda Andrade, Michael Mosley, Jason Butler Harner, Eve Harlow, Elizabeth Cappuccino, and Aaron Moten.
