Outbreak

"Try to remain calm."

1995 2h 9m EN

👍

6.6

SOLID

★6.6TMDB · 2,604

ActionDramaScience FictionThriller

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

A deadly airborne virus finds its way into the USA and starts killing off people at an epidemic rate. Col. Sam Daniels' job is to stop the virus spreading from a small town, which must be quarantined, and to prevent an over reaction by the White House.

“Try to remain calm.”

WhatsApp X Facebook Telegram

Where to watch · US

AMC+ Roku Premium ChannelSubscription

Amazon VideoRent

Apple TV StoreRent

Google Play MoviesRent

YouTubeRent

Fandango At HomeRent

Spectrum On DemandRent

Amazon VideoBuy

Apple TV StoreBuy

Google Play MoviesBuy

YouTubeBuy

Fandango At HomeBuy

Cast

Dustin Hoffman
Sam Daniels
Rene Russo
Robby Keough
Morgan Freeman
General Billy Ford
Kevin Spacey
Casey Schuler
Cuba Gooding Jr.
Major Salt
Donald Sutherland
General Donald McClintock
Patrick Dempsey
Jimbo Scott
Zakes Mokae
Dr. Benjamin Iwabi

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Wolfgang Petersen
Writers: Robert Roy Pool, Laurence Dworet
Languages: English, Korean, French
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Mid-budget at $50M — the now-extinct middle tier of Hollywood.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Made its money back 3.8× over at the box office.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

ERA

Did you know

31 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

Dialogue crosses 3 languages: English, Korean, French.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

CAST

Did you know

237+ people credited in cast and crew — a small city's worth of labour.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Wolfgang Petersen, shot by Michael Ballhaus. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by James Newton Howard. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Neil Travis shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Wolfgang Petersen directs. Michael Ballhaus behind the camera. James Newton Howard scores. Neil Travis cuts. Made its budget back several times over at the box office. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English, Korean, French.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Mid-budget at $50M — the now-extinct middle tier of Hollywood.
2Made its money back 3.8× over at the box office.
331 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
4Dialogue crosses 3 languages: English, Korean, French.
5237+ people credited in cast and crew — a small city's worth of labour.
6Directed by Wolfgang Petersen, shot by Michael Ballhaus. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
7Original score by James Newton Howard. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
8Editor Neil Travis shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
9Dustin Hoffman and Rene Russo and Morgan Freeman carry the top of the cast.
10Marketing tagline: "Try to remain calm.".
11IMDB entry: tt0114069 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

The technical file

Cinematography: Michael Ballhaus
Original score: James Newton Howard
Editing: Neil Travis
Production design: William Sandell
Costume design: Erica Edell Phillips
Makeup / hair: Ellis Burman Jr.
VFX supervisor: Mark Vargo
Sound: Frank A. Montaño
Stunt coordinator: Buddy Van Horn
Runtime: 129 min · 2h 9m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $50,000,000
Box office: $189,900,000
Return: 380% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): R
IMDB: Outbreak (1995)

Also by

Wolfgang Petersen

Stills · wallpapers

Selected frames

Full-resolution frames — open one to save it as a wallpaper.

Wallpaper

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

Wuchak2019-03-25
★ 8/10
Scarier than any horror flick — and ultra-suspenseful After a deadly incurable African virus is brought to a Northern California coastal town via a monkey the military moves in to quarantine the village. While Dustin Hoffman seeks to find an antidote, the two generals in charge of the quarantine (Morgan Freeman & Donald Sutherland) strangely decide to annihilate the town. Can Hoffman find a cure in time? And, even if he does, can he stop the firebombing? Wolfgang Petersen's "Outbreak" (1995) is an outstanding drama/thriller, which I suppose you could designate as a disaster flick. Although viruses are so small they're invisible, they have the potential to be the biggest monsters of all. Certain deadly viruses, if let loose, can wipe out an entire town in a couple days. This is the scenario in "Outbreak." It COULD happen and is therefore realistic, which naturally makes the story more horrifying than most horror flicks or monster movies. But "Outbreak" is more than just a scary what-if story, the second half involves a military cover-up and is edge-of-your-seat suspenseful, all the way to the final minutes. It's like an avalanche that slowly builds momentum. Cuba Gooding Jr. is also on hand in a significant role as Hoffman's partner in the race-against-time. And, for those who care, there's a romantic subplot about Hoffman’s character and his ex-wife, played by Rene Russo. Will they get back together? The locations are magnificent, filmed in the coastal towns Eureka, Arcata and Ferndale, California, all in the extreme Northern part of the state, just south of the Redwoods and West of Bigfoot territory (i.e. Willow Creek). The African sequences were shot in Hawaii. BOTTOM LINE: This is top-of-the-line cinema — equal parts scary, dramatic and suspenseful. The film runs 2 hours, 7 minutes. GRADE: A-
CinemaSerf2023-08-27
★ 7/10
I found this a far better disaster-scenario movie then most, as Dustin Hoffman plays a military doctor on the hunt for the source of a lethal virus that could potentially eradicate life in the USA in a matter of days. Hoffman has to convince his boss - Morgan Freeman and his boss Donald Sutherland that he is up to the job and after a few false leads is soon on the trail of an African monkey that may hold the solution. Denied sufficient resource from the Army, he enlists the help of ex-wife (and expert in disease control Rene Russo) to help him grapple with his predicament.The story is tautly delivered with Sutherland rather good as the slightly unhinged general whose almost "nuke 'em" strategy leads for an uncomfortably strained relationship with the scientist. There is a smattering of plausible science and plenty of action - Cuba Gooding Jr. is his sort of "Mr. T" sidekick and Kevin Spacey and Patrick Dempsey add a bit of collateral too. Given the April 2020 Covid-19 situation, "Outbreak" has an added poignancy as to just how simply these things could occur!