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Coronavirus: Lost star Evangeline Lilly apologises for ‘arrogant, dismissive’ comments

Adam White
·3 min read
Evangeline Lilly at an event in 2018: David Livingston/Getty Images
Evangeline Lilly at an event in 2018: David Livingston/Getty Images

Evangeline Lilly has apologised for her “arrogant, dismissive and cryptic” coronavirus comments, assuring fans that she is “doing her part”.

The Lost and Ant-Man actor sparked outrage last week (16 March) after announcing she had no intention of self-isolating during the pandemic, claiming that she valued her “freedom”.

She has now said that her initial comments came from a place of fear.

“I am writing [to] you from my home where I have been social distancing since 18 March – when social distancing was instituted in the small community where I am currently living,” Lilly wrote in the lengthy statement.

“Despite my intense trepidation over the socioeconomic and political repercussions of this course of action, PLEASE KNOW I AM DOING MY PART TO FLATTEN THE CURVE, PRACTICING SOCIAL DISTANCING AND STAYING HOME WITH MY FAMILY.”

She continued, “I want to offer my sincere and heartfelt apology for the insensitivity I showed in my previous post to the very real suffering and fear that has gripped the world through Covid-19.

“Grandparents, parents, children, sisters and brothers are dying, the world is rallying to find a way to stop this very real threat, and my ensuing silence has sent a dismissive, arrogant and cryptic message.”

Lilly added that she “never meant to hurt” those most affected by the pandemic, and that she thought her message was “infusing calm into the hysteria”.

View this post on Instagram

Hello everyone. I am writing you from my home where I have been social distancing since Mar 18th – when social distancing was instituted in the small community where I am currently living. At the time of my Mar 16th post, the directives from the authorities here were that we not congregate in groups of more than 250ppl and that we wash our hands regularly, which we were doing. Two days later, those directives changed and, despite my intense trepidation over the socioeconomic and political repercussions of this course of action, PLEASE KNOW I AM DOING MY PART TO FLATTEN THE CURVE, PRACTICING SOCIAL DISTANCING AND STAYING HOME WITH MY FAMILY. I want to offer my sincere and heartfelt apology for the insensitivity I showed in my previous post to the very real suffering and fear that has gripped the world through COVID19. Grandparents, parents, children, sisters and brothers are dying, the world is rallying to find a way to stop this very real threat, and my ensuing silence has sent a dismissive, arrogant and cryptic message. My direct and special apologies to those most affected by this pandemic. I never meant to hurt you. When I wrote that post 10 days ago, I thought I was infusing calm into the hysteria. I can see now that I was projecting my own fears into an already fearful and traumatic situation. I am grieved by the ongoing loss of life, and the impossible decisions medical workers around the world must make as they treat those affected. I am concerned for our communities – small businesses and families living paycheck-to-paycheck – and I am trying to follow responsible recommendations for how to help. Like many of you, I fear for the political aftermath of this pandemic, and I am praying for us all. At the same time, I am heartened by the beauty and humanity I see so many people demonstrating toward one another in this vulnerable time. When I was grappling with my own fears over social distancing, one kind, wise and gracious person said to me “do it out of love, not fear” and it helped me to realize my place in all of this. Sending love to all of you, even if you can’t return it right now. EL

A post shared by Evangeline Lilly (@evangelinelillyofficial) on Mar 26, 2020 at 1:29pm PDT

Lilly’s original comments, in which she suggested the US government were taking too much control over simple “respiratory flu”, were condemned by stars including Sophie Turner and Lilly’s former Lost co-star Maggie Grace.

Daniel Dae Kim, who portrayed Jin on the long-running mystery series with Lilly, recently tested positive for coronavirus.