Outbreak (film)

Outbreak (film)

Outbreak is a 1995 American disaster film starring Dustin Hoffman, Rene Russo, Cuba Gooding, Jr., and Morgan Freeman. The film was directed by Wolfgang Petersen. In addition, Outbreak features Donald Sutherland, Kevin Spacey, and Patrick Dempsey.

The film focuses on an outbreak of a fictional Ebola-like virus called Motaba in Zaire and later in a small town in the United States. Its primary settings are government disease control centers USAMRIID and the CDC, and the fictional town of Cedar Creek, California. Outbreak shows how far the military and civilian agencies might go to contain the spread of a deadly contagion.

The film was released on March 10, 1995 and proved a solid box office success. The film was nominated for various awards but failed to garner any major award nominations. It also raised various "what-if" scenarios: media outlets began to question what the government would really do in a similar situation and if the CDC has plans in case an outbreak ever does occur. A real-life outbreak of the Ebola virus occurred in Zaire only a few months after the film was released.