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Antonio Banderas kicked COVID’s butt. And he has the photo to prove it

Antonio Banderas
Antonio Banderas arrives at the Oscars in Los Angeles on Feb. 9, 2020.
(Richard Shotwell / Invision/Associated Press)
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Antonio Banderas is alive and kicking — literally.

The Spanish actor, who revealed that he had tested positive for COVID-19 on his 60th birthday earlier this month, announced on Tuesday that he has fully recovered. And he included a humorous image of him in action amid colorful little coronaviruses.

“After 21 days of disciplinary confinement I can say now that today I overcame the Covid 19 infection. I am cured,” he wrote on Twitter. “My thoughts go to those who weren’t as fortunate as me, and to those who suffered more than I did. I also wish strength to the ones who are in the middle of the fight.”

The tweet, posted first in Spanish and then in English, was accompanied by an edit of photographer Ethan James Green’s shot of Banderas for Vanity Fair’s Hollywood issue in January.

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At the time, Banderas told the magazine that “I had a heart attack two years ago. They say it was one of the best things that happened in my life… It gives you a lot of clarity, because you say, ‘Oh, my God, this is it? It can go this fast?’”

Six months after that interview, the Oscar-nominated “Pain and Glory” actor came face to face with his mortality again. He announced on Aug. 10 that he would be celebrating his 60th birthday in quarantine after testing positive for COVID-19.

“I would like to add that I feel relatively good, just a little more tired than usual, and am confident that I will recover as soon as possible following medical instructions that I hope will allow me to overcome the infectious period that I am suffering, and that is affecting so many people around the planet,” Banderas wrote in Spanish.

Banderas is one among many celebrities who have tested positive for the virus, including Tom Hanks, Idris Elba and Daniel Dae Kim. Their experiences run the gamut from mild, as in Banderas’ case, to life-threatening, as in singer Pink’s case.

“There have been many nights where I cried, and I have never prayed more in my life,” Pink said on Instagram. “At one point I heard myself saying, ‘I thought they promised us our kids would be OK.’ And it’s not guaranteed. There’s no one who is safe from this.”

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