Actor Tommy 'Tiny' Lister tested positive for COVID-19 nearly four months before his death.
According to People Magazine, Lister, who died at the age of 62 on Thursday (local time) after having exhibited "COVID symptoms" for a week, was diagnosed with the virus earlier this year, his manager Cindy Cowan told the outlet.
"He got a positive result back about four months ago and obviously recovered from that," she said.
While at the time he suffered from difficulty breathing and fatigue, recently the actor had been doing "better than ever."
"He kind of was one of those people that used the lockdown to work out and get in the best shape ever. He actually looked the best he's ever looked and I've never seen him more excited about what was coming next," said Cowan.
However, a week before his death, Lister began "to feel not well again."
Cowan said, "He thought maybe his diabetes was starting to kick up because he just wasn't feeling right. He said, 'I feel like I'm getting COVID again.'"
After the weekend went by and Lister was still "having a hard time breathing," his manager told him that he needed to get tested. "I actually think he was really afraid to get tested again," she added, noting that she planned on taking him to the doctor on Thursday, "and then obviously Thursday never happened."
"It's remarkable and truly heartbreaking. All of us are kicking ourselves that we didn't force him [to get tested] earlier,"she said.
As per People Magazine, referencing an interview Lister did just days before his death, Cowan noted that the actor was hopeful about receiving the COVID-19 vaccine.
"He wanted to be one of the first ones to get the vaccine because he wanted to be able to get his life back to normal and be able to spend Christmas with his daughter. He was looking forward to that and he thought he'd be one of the first in line because he was in his 60s and had a pre-existing condition.It's so sad that he said that six days prior to passing," said Cowan.
Lister was found unresponsive at his apartment in California on Thursday and was pronounced dead at the scene, TMZ previously reported.
The actor kicked off his film career in the 1980s, appearing in movies such as 'Runaway Train' and 'Beverly Hills Cop II.' He later broke out as a film actor, playing the part of Deebo in the 1995 film 'Friday'. He reprised the role for its 2000 sequel, 'Next Friday'.
( With inputs from ANI )
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