Fact Check: Did Patrick Stewart once say Trump put America on edge of a 'very bad flu infection'?
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Following the death of acclaimed actor Patrick Stewart, a claim began circulating on social media platforms that he once said that President Donald Trump put America on the edge of a "very bad flu infection." The claim has sparked questions and speculation from online users, with many calling for a fact-check of the remark.
Claim: Patrick Stewart said Donald Trump put America on the edge of a 'very bad flu infection'
According to a viral claim that appeared on X (formerly Twitter), the 'X-Men' actor said in 2017, “You might say to me, well, you're not an American, what has it got to do with you? The fact is, when America sneezes, the world catches a cold. America, I think, is on the edge of a very bad flu infection, and it's because of the man who's in the White House."
The claim has also spread on other platforms such as Facebook and Instagram, collectively garnering millions of views as of this writing.
While many appeared to believe it to be an authentic statement by the late actor, others dismissed it as fake and called for a fact-check.
Fact Check: True, Patrick Stewart did say it in 2017
The claim is indeed true, as the quote is correctly attributed to the veteran actor. The quote originated from an interview he gave to The AV Club, an online newspaper and entertainment website, published in November 2017, roughly ten months after Trump’s first entered the White House.
The video is authentic and does not contain any signs of being generated using artificial intelligence (AI).
In a clip titled "Sir Patrick Stewart is pretty godd*** upset about Donald Trump," the actor can be heard saying the viral quote.
“You might say to me, ‘Well, you're not an American, what has it got to do with you?’ The fact is, when America sneezes, the world catches a cold. And America, I think, is on the edge of a very bad flu infection, and it's because of the man who is in the White House. I do find, as time goes by, I find myself becoming increasingly anxious about where he's heading,” Stewart said.
Patrick Stewart dies at 86 after brief battle with Alzheimer’s and Lewy body dementia
The claim surfaced following the death of Stewart at the age of 86, on Wednesday, October 28, at his Los Angeles home.
The announcement came on Thursday on Stewart’s Instagram account, which said his wife, Sunny Ozell, was by his side as he lived through what the statement described as a “brief and poignant journey with Alzheimer’s Disease and Lewy Body Dementia.”
