New Zealand DENIES Kirsten Dunst’s request for quarantine special treatment

Hollywood star Kirsten Dunst and her fiancé, Jesse Plemons, were forced to quarantine at a five-star Auckland hotel after their applications to isolate at a remote rural property were declined.

The American couple were initially permitted to enter the country by the New Zealand government in May to resume work for an upcoming film when mostly all other foreigners were banned due to tight COVID-19 border restrictions.

Kirsten, 38, and Jesse, 32, then applied for an added exception to serve their two-week quarantine period at an idyllic rural property while their imported cast and crew stayed at the five-star SO/ Auckland hotel.

However, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (Mfat) issued the couple a denial letter stating that their request would not be accommodated. 

Kirsten and Jesse were already in New Zealand when the COVID-19 pandemic hit in March, and quickly they made their way back home to Los Angeles.

The pair, their two-year-old son Ennis and 16 ‘essential’ workers were granted exception from New Zealand strict border rules in mid-May to return to the country and resume filming for the new Jane Campion drama, The Power of the Dog.

A week later, the A-list couple’s request to isolate at a rural property was denied.

The Mfat letter, dated May 21, read: ‘Managed isolation must be undertaken in a facility [hotel] that has wrap-round health and security services in place already.’

In a following application just hours later, The Power Of The Dog producer Chloe Smith wrote on behalf of the Hollywood actors: ‘In order for Ms Dunst and Mr Plemons to undertake their travel to New Zealand, they must be assured of the highest standards of privacy.

‘There is a huge amount of public interest in Ms Dunst and Mr Plemons and their activities.

‘She is routinely followed by paparazzi photographers and articles have been published on their activities in New Zealand.’

Smith concluded: ‘We will be unable to give them an assurance of privacy and, therefore, we will be unable to complete the film, if they are required to isolate under managed conditions.’

In an interview with Variety at the time, Kirsten admitted that ‘having a 2-year-old in a hotel room for two weeks’ during quarantine was ‘challenging.’

Kirsten and Jesse will star alongside Thomasin McKenzie, Frances Conroy and Benedict Cumberbatch in the movie The Power Of The Dog, which is slated for release next year.

New Zealand announced nine new coronavirus cases on Monday, five of which were in the community and were traced to the known Auckland cluster.

New Zealand has recorded 1,387 total confirmed cases of COVID-19 so far and 22 deaths.