The Oscar-winning actor Benicio Del Toro lost his uncle to COVID-19 exactly one year ago, and his brother, the chief medical officer of a hospital in New York City, contracted the virus while on the front line of the fight against the pandemic.
“Because of that, I have been closely informed, almost play-by-play, of the incredible challenges that front line and health care workers have had to face in 2020,” Del Toro said during a press briefing Tuesday.
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But he saw “a light at the end of the tunnel” in December when the COVID-19 vaccine rollout began across the nation. Several weeks later, his brother opened up to Del Toro about his concerns regarding low vaccination rates in Latino communities.
“When I asked him why, he said that one of the reasons was lack of truthful information and lack of outreach,” Del Toro said. That’s when the Puerto Rican actor decided to partner with the actor Zoe Saldana to create a bilingual campaign to combat COVID-19 vaccine misinformation in an effort to encourage more Latinos to get vaccinated.
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