Los Angeles County’s daily tally of new Covid cases has topped 8,000 for the first time since January and, like many local industries, Hollywood is not immune.
Warner Bros. has recorded what may be the biggest showbiz outbreak of the pandemic, with 31 employees listed as infected on the official L.A. County Public Health Department web site. The studio has seen smaller outbreaks, mostly in the range of 3-5 cases. In May its Bldg 128 had a cluster of 5 cases while Stages 27 and 29 also saw 5 cases.
The next-highest Industry-related outbreak we’re aware of took place at Lionsgate, also in May, when the studio saw 21 infections. More than half of those were among employees returning from CinemaCon in Las Vegas.
Deadline reached out to Warner Bros. and will add any comment we receive.
Other notable outbreak sites include The Walt Disney Company, which is currently listed with six infections. Fox Sports, which has appeared on the list multiple times, now has a tally of 10. In May, Fox Sports and Fox Sports Deportes had more than a dozen cases.
Speaking of sports, the Dodgers now have their second 10-case outbreak of the pandemic, while Crypto.com Arena is listed with 7 infections. By comparison, Crypto.com recorded 61 infections at the peak of the first Omicron wave in January.
Experts say any official case numbers across the board are likely undercounts due to the widespread use of at-home test kits, the results of which are rarely reported.