Concerns surrounding the coronavirus outbreak has forced Ozzy Osbourne to cancel his previously scheduled appearance at the South By Southwest festival.

The legendary rocker planned to attend the event, which takes place annually in Austin, Texas, to promote the new documentary Biography: The Nine Lives of Ozzy Osbourne. The film chronicles the Prince of Darkness’ life, from childhood, to his years fronting Black Sabbath and his own success as a solo artist. The documentary features interviews with Ozzy, his family members Sharon, Kelly and Jack, as well as notable music industry veterans Rick Rubin, Ice-T, Marilyn Manson, Rob Zombie and Korn’s Jonathan Davis. Despite Ozzy’s cancellation, the film is still set to make its world premiere at the fest. Biography: The Nine Lives of Ozzy Osbourne will air on A&E this summer.

Osbourne is just the latest notable name to pull out of SXSW. Nine Inch Nails frontman Trent Reznor, who had been scheduled to discuss his work on the HBO series Watchmen, announced via Twitter that he would no longer be attending.

A growing list of major companies, including Netflix, Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, Mashable and LinkedIn have also withdrawn from the event. Despite ongoing fears surrounding coronavirus, SXSW organizers insist they are “working closely on a daily basis with local, state, and federal agencies to plan for a safe event."

Since being first identified in Wuhan, China in December of 2019, coronavirus has spread to more than 75 countries and territories across the globe. The pandemic has reportedly claimed the lives of more than 3,200 people worldwide. Fears surrounding the virus have led to cancellation concert tours, sporting events, major film shoots and more.

 

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