2010 Feb 18

Paltrow, Fishburne Join Stellar “Contagion” Cast

Gwyneth Paltrow and Laurence Fishburne are joining the star-studded ensemble of Steven Soderbergh’s Contagion.

I try to avoid simply listing cast members of a film, but this one bears repeating: Matt Damon, Kate Winslet, Marion Cotillard, Jude Law, and now these two. Sure, Soderbergh has put together brilliant casts before, specifically on the Ocean’s trilogy, but this mix of Hollywood talent is incredible.

According to the Playlist, most of the actors will be playing members of a medical team brought in by the Center for Disease Control (CDC) after a deadly virus outbreak. A few of them may even be hopping on planes to help other parts of the world, which fits with previous reports that the story would play out over four continents.

Deadline is reporting Warner Bros has snatched up the rights to the film and will co-finance with Participant Media on the $60 million budget. They won the bidding war over Twilight studio Summit Entertainment, among others. It was a quick acquisition since Soderbergh only recently shifted his focus to this instead of a Liberace biopic with Damon and Michael Douglas. He’s also in production on the film Knockout already about an elite black ops military team.

Source: News in Film