Tom Hanks and his wife Rita Wilson had visited a number of Australian tourism hotspots - like Bondi Beach and Circular Quay - before being diagnosed with coronavirus.

Hollywood superstars are currently in isolation at Gold Coast University Hospital after showing symptoms related to COVID-19.

Hanks made the announcement in a post to fans on his Instagram.

"We felt a bit tired, like we had colds, and some body aches. Rita had some chills that came and went. Slight fevers too. To play things right, as is needed in the world right now, we were tested for the coronavirus, and were found to be positive," he said.

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"We Hanks' will be tested, observed, and isolated for as long as public health and safety requires. Not much more to it than a one-day-at-a-time approach, no?

"We'll keep the world posted and updated."

The married couple is in Australia for production of Baz Luhrmann's untitled Elvis Presley movie, in which Hanks is playing Presley's iconic manager Colonel Tom Parker.

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said she could not comment on any specifics of the severity of their conditions.

"What I will say is that eight people have been treated for coronavirus at this hospital and have been discharged in the past," she said.

"I am very confident that we have world class doctors that are determined to look after them and give them the best possible care."

Ms Palaszczuk said she had been in contact with Luhrmann and passed on her well wishes on behalf of all Australians.

"He has said to me that he wants to pass on to everyone that we all stand with the people of Queensland in making sure that we comply with any restrictions.

"And of course that we want to see a very speedy recovery and I have passed on to Baz that the people of Queensland and the people of Australia wish Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson all the best for recovery.

"There will be a halt to some of the filming at the moment while Tom and Rita get the very best care."

Taking to Instagram, Hanks' son Chet Hanks said he had spoken to his parents and they were both "fine".

"I just got off the phone with them. They both are fine. They're not even that sick, they're not worried about it they're not trippin'," he said.

" But they're going through all the necessary health precautions obviously.

" I don't think it's anything to be too worried about. I appreciate everybody's concern."

It is not clear how the duo contracted coronavirus.

Last week Wilson performed to a sold out crowd at Brisbane's Emporium hotel.

Today Extra host not concerned

Earlier this week, Wilson appeared on Nine's Today and performed a song from her new album.

Today Extra host David Campbell said Wilson did not show any symptoms while she was on the set.

"She came in to the Today Show on Monday. She was delightful, really nice and she didn't show symptoms or anything," Campbell said.

"She actually made a joke coming into the studio saying we shouldn't shake hands we should bump elbows … so we bumped elbows."

Campbell said he planned on being retested for coronavirus after the encounter but said he felt fine at the moment.

"We spent seven or eight minutes with Rita. She didn't seem to have a runny nose that I could see at the time during the short amount of time with her," he said.

Campbell said the show had already been practising strict hygiene procedures on the set.

"We have a policy that when people come into the studio (of) not shaking hands as much and trying to police that as much as we can."

Hanks and Wilson's diagnoses comes just a day after a Gold Coast University campus became the first one to shut its doors following detection of coronavirus.

Yesterday two more cases of the novel coronavirus were recorded in Queensland, taking the total number of cases in the state to 20.

Other actors involved in the project include Maggie Gyllenhaal, Austin Butler and Rufus Sewell.

Warner Bros said it was taking precautions to protect anyone involved in the making of the film.

"We have been made aware that a company member from our Elvis feature film, which is currently in pre-production in The Gold Coast, Australia, has tested positive for COVID-19 (coronavirus)," it said in a statement.

"We are working closely with the appropriate Australian health agencies to identify and contact anyone who may have come in direct contact with the individual.  The health and safety of our company members is always our top priority, and we are taking precautions to protect everyone who works on our productions around the world."

Global pandemic declared

The World Health Organisation has declared the global coronavirus crisis is now a pandemic, expressing alarm about both mounting infections and slow government responses.

"We have called every day for countries to take urgent and aggressive action. We have rung the alarm bell loud and clear," WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in Geneva overnight.

"All countries can still change the course of this pandemic. If countries detect, test, treat, isolate, trace and mobilise their people in the response.

"We are deeply concerned by the alarming levels of spread and severity and by the alarming levels of inaction."

The coronavirus has infected more than 100,000 people worldwide.

With all of the news of event cancellations, empty flights and health precautions, it's natural that people may get a little anxious every time they feel a tickle in their throat or the beginnings of a bad cough.

But while the coronavirus is certainly something to take seriously, the chances of any individual person getting it are still low.

Source: 9News https://www.9news.com.au/national/tom-hanks-rita-wilson-test-positive-for-coronavirus-in-gc-hospital/d329a298-309d-4464-a66f-2379b9f8d436