Josh Gad has pulled out of appearing in Jesus Christ Superstar after contracting COVID-19.

The 44-year-old actor has been left "heartbroken" at having to miss the chance to play King Herod in the musical extravaganza, which will run at the Hollywood Bowl from 1-3 August but promised fans the production - which stars Cynthia Erivo as Jesus and Adam Lambert as Judas - will be one of the "greatest things" they will ever get to see.

He shared a statement on Instagram which read: "It is with enormous heartbreak that I inform you all that unfortunately, I have contracted a virus known as COVID (remember that one little b****** from season one of 'earth really sucks right now?'?

"Anyway, out of an abundance of caution and respect for my cast, I will not be performing in Jesus Christ Superstar this weekend (unless I test negative).

"It truly breaks my heart, but I can assure you all that this is going to be one of the greatest things you will ever see.

"I hope at some point you get to see me wear the crown and show you what we've been up to, because it was quite something, but for now, sadly, I will not be able to grace the Hollywood Bowl.(sic)"

The Hollywood Bowl reshared Josh's statement and wished the Frozen actor a "speedy recovery", and confirmed they "will announce a new performer for the role of King Herod in Jesus Christ Superstar soon."

Josh recently spoke of how he decided to become an actor after seeing the impact his comedic talents had on his mom when he tried to brighten her mood amid his parents divorce.

He told the Bullseye podcast: "I felt like during this period, my job was, 'I'm going to make you laugh.' When I can break through that wall of pain, it's a superpower.

"And I felt like I was seeing, in real-time, that I was bringing her out of this dark spiral she was in, even for just brief moments at a time.

"I realised one day that if I could do this for my mom, is there a path for me to do this at large? Can I actually give this gift to other people, the gift of laughter and joy? The gift of escapism?

"And slowly but surely, that became my path, and part of that was my mom again, giving me a set of tools with which to refine my craft."