Fishburne the Latest to Board Soderbergh’s Contagion

Contagion (2011) Movie — By Nix on February 18, 2010 |

You gotta admit, when Steven Soderbergh puts his mind to making an uber A-list ensemble film (as he did with the “Ocean’s Eleven” movies), he sure doesn’t have a whole lot of trouble getting the big names to sign up in bunches. His latest, the virus outbreak thriller “Contagion” has already signed on Kate Winslet, Matt Damon, Marion Cotillard, Jude Law and Gwyneth Paltrow, and now word is that Laurence Fishburne, Morpheus himself, may also join up if his schedule permits.

The film will have most of the big names playing doctors who are called to duty by the Centers for Disease Control when a major viral outbreak starts killing people around the world. The cast will then be split up and jet off to different continents (the film will apparently be very global in scope). Fishburne, if he does sign on, will get just as big a role as the other big names.

Soderbergh will direct from a script by Scott Burns (“The Bourne Ultimatum”) for Warner Bros. He’ll have $60 million dollars to work with, and that will probably balloon as more big names signed on.

Meanwhile, I can’t wait to see what Soderbergh does with a mixed martial arts fighter turned actress in “Knockout”.