Amid routine testing on an unnamed Westbrook production by Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith, 10 people in Los Angeles tested positive for COVID-19 last week. But after only a few days of quarantine and another battery of tests, all 10 tests then negative, Variation has learned exclusively, and underscores the challenges facing production companies and studios with returning to active television and film shows amid the ongoing pandemic.
“We have followed the guidelines of CDC, California and California and Los Angeles County for all of our productions and photo shoots, including routine testing,” a Westbrook spokesman said. “We received 10 positive tests and the crew members were quarantined and remain in quarantine. All 10 people were retested and received negative results. We will continue to follow all official guidelines and safety protocols. ”
Variation ‘The notion is that those who tested positive were crew members and not talented. They will remain in quarantine for a total of 14 days, according to a source familiar with the situation. Those deployed on Westbrook sets are routinely tested by the same laboratory.
The only ongoing series currently in production at Westbrook Studios is Red Table Talks, hosted by Jada Pinkett Smith, while Westbrook Media has a number of media programs in production. The company does not currently have any films in production. Both Westbrook Studios and Westbrook Media are subsidiaries of Westbrook, which was founded in 2019 and also houses a digital content studio, social media management and creative brand incubator, among other companies.
The 10 confirmed cases at the entertainment company Calabasas, California, are a case of public record, published by the County of Los Angeles’ Department of Public Health. These cases are still on the plate despite the recent negative test results.
While Hollywood is collectively looking to return to work, Westbrook’s interesting case of positive, then negative, coronavirus test results is a possible look at the difficulties that even certain productions with routine testing in advance must face.
