Coronavirus

Crew Member of Upcoming Fox Series ‘NeXt' Tests Positive for Coronavirus at Cinespace Studios

NBCUniversal, Inc.

A crew member of Fox’s upcoming TV show “neXt,” which finished filming last week at Cinespace Chicago Film Studios, has tested positive for coronavirus.

The crew member is a woman in her 50s who recently traveled from California to Illinois, according to a source.

“NeXt” stars John Slattery, of “Mad Men,” and is about an FBI cyber-crime team fighting a worldwide AI threat. The Cinespace campus, 2621 W. 15th Pl., is also home to NBC’s “Chicago Fire,” “Chicago Med” and “Chicago P.D.”

Cinespace was alerted by health officials Monday night that a crew member tested positive for coronavirus. The campus began deep cleaning and will remain open and operational, according to a statement.

Eight additional coronavirus cases were confirmed in Illinois on Tuesday, bringing the state's total to 19, Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced earlier in the day. NBC 5's Patrick Fazio has a roundup of what is known as of Tuesday evening.

“The health and safety of our staff and tenants are paramount to us,” Cinespace said. “We are in full compliance with the City of Chicago health directives issued last week. We distributed those directives to all film/television production tenants and all of our employees.”

The Independent Film Alliance of Chicago, which operates at Cinespace, said its offices and workspace remain open.

Fox’s parent company, Disney, said the crew member is receiving treatment.

“We are working closely with the (Chicago Dept. of Public Health) to identify and contact all individuals who came in direct contact with the crew member, and are taking precautions to protect all who work on our productions.”

The tally of confirmed coronavirus cases in Illinois reached 19 on Tuesday.

Copyright CHIST - SunTimes
Contact Us