Italy is currently in the midst of a nationwide quarantine over COVID-19 coronavirus concerns, but that hasn't stopped citizens from going outside. The majority of the country's population of 62 million have been complying with the regulations imposed, but some have been using the empty streets as an opportunity to go jogging, go to the beach, or walk their dogs more than usual. One of the mayors has outright called out citizens for treating the quarantine like "Will Smith in I Am Legend."
Mayors across the country have pleaded with citizens to follow the strict regulations, and there's now a compilation featuring all of their messages to the public. "I saw a fellow citizen amiably jog up and down the street, accompanied by a dog that was visibly worn out. I stopped and told him: ‘Look, this isn’t a film. You are not Will Smith in I Am Legend. So, you have to go home,'" said mayor Giuseppe Falcomatá.
Another, more aggressive mayor added, "Where the fuck are you all going? You and your dogs... Which must have an inflamed prostate?" The videos arrive after Italian prime minister Giuseppe Conte said that "everyone's efforts are needed as the survival of the social and economic fabric of our country is at stake."
Recently, Will Smith addressed comparisons between the current situation across the world and his character in I Am Legend. "I feel responsible for a lot of the misinformation," he joked in an episode of Red Table Talk. "Just as a family we've been sitting down and we've been talking. When I was preparing for I Am legend my character was a virologist so I had an opportunity in my preparation for the role to go to the CDC... There was a basic foundational comprehension of viruses and viral pathogens that I developed and it really changed my life and how I looked at the world. There’s basic concepts that people do not understand."
Obviously, Smith indicated that the film was nothing like real life, and that anyone looking on how to survive during this trying time should not use it as an inspiration.
