Lea Michele Reveals New COVID Side Effect: A Sense of Humor

In the past two-plus years of the COVID-19 pandemic, we have known that some of the main symptoms of the virus include a hacking, dry cough, full body aches, and a loss of taste and/or smell. But in what may be a breakthrough case with major implications for both medicine and musicals, Funny Girl star Lea Michele has shown signs of another side effect that Dr. Fauci neglected to alert the masses to: gaining a sense of humor.

Michele, who has long been unable to take a joke, posted a very funny TikTok over the weekend while quarantining at home from the bout of karma that struck her down less than a week after she assumed the role of Fanny Brice in Funny Girl.

If, for some reason, the Broadway-turned-Glee-turned-Broadway actress’s sophisticated use of humor in this video flew over your head, I will ruin the joke by explaining it: You see, Lea Michele is illiterate. At least, that’s the rumor that has been circulating for years. A few weeks ago, she told the New York Times that the claim was sexist, but still did not deny the fact that she has difficulties reading. Now, here she is on her sick bed, making a TikTok about having BFF Jonathan Groff read her the comments on her first post on the platform.

Not only is the TikTok funny, but it also effectively kills the running joke. By finally acknowledging the rumor with an iota of self-awareness, Lea Michele won. The bit is over forever. Any good publicist — or, to be honest, a single one of her frenemy fans on Twitter — would have told her to do this years ago, but apparently it took being infected and bedridden. The novel coronavirus is one of the hardest-working girls in show biz, and it’s nice that we can finally see her shine.