Movies ‘Contagion’ and ‘Outbreak’ peak in popularity amid coronavirus pandemic
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Two movies from the past years “Contagion” and “Outbreak” are registering a resurgence in popularity in the last days amid the coronavirus pandemic.
According to Warner Bros., the film ‘Contagion’ was listed as No. 270 among its catalog titles at the end of December. Since the start of 2020, it has jumped to second, bested only by Harry Potter movies. “Contagion” is also trending on Amazon Prime Video and has flirted with the iTunes top 10.
Both can be described as suspense-thrillers about deadly viruses that threaten to ricochet around the planet killing millions, if not everyone, but only one feels even remotely close to the real situation we face today with the novel coronavirus, or COVID-19.
“Outbreak,” a 1995 movie about a deadly virus, is rising in popularity on Netflix.
The movie, starring Dustin Hoffman and Cuba Gooding Jr has registered a surge, amid concerns over the coronavirus.
Netflix describes the movie like this: “In this doomsday thriller, an Army virologist tries to thwart a global biological meltdown in the form of a killer virus infesting a California town.”
It’s not the only movie suddenly gaining attention long after its release during the coronavirus pandemic, which has killed more than 4,000 people worldwide.
The 2011 movie “Contagion,” about a pandemic that threatens to wipe out much of humanity, has been surging up the charts on iTunes.
Unlike “Outbreak,” “Contagion” is not streaming on Netflix or other services.
“Contagion’s” screenwriter, Scott Burns, told The New York Times that people had been asking him questions about the coronavirus on social media.
“I’m alarmed when people choose to ask a screenwriter for advice, rather than a doctor,” he told The Times.
