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Gavin Hood

Gavin Hood

Actor, director, writer and producer · Born May 12, 1963 (63) · Johannesburg, South Africa

Gavin Hood (born 12 May 1963) is a South African filmmaker, and actor, best known for writing and directing Tsotsi (2005), which won the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film. He also directed the films X-Men Origins: Wolverine, Ender's Game, Eye in the Sky and Official Secrets.

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Biography from TMDB.

Born
May 12, 1963 (63)
From
Johannesburg, South Africa
Works as
Actor, director, writer and producer
Titles
15 on MovieCove · 21 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 37 days to Oct 26Down 20% in 30 days

What are Gavin Hood's films like?

Across their 13 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Morality and Survival.

Genres

Action6 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 26th percentile
: browse their Action movies
Drama2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 77th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Drama movies

Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.

Themes

share of theme weight
Morality
36%
Survival
23%
Self
14%
Bonds
13%
Ideas
9%
Power
4%
Society
2%
Justice4 titles, browse their movies with this themeFamily bonds5 titles, browse their movies with this themeSurvival4 titles, browse their movies with this themeIdentity2 titles, browse their movies with this themeRedemption2 titles, browse their movies with this themeRevenge2 titles, browse their movies with this themeTruth2 titles, browse their movies with this themeWar2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 12 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Serious: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their serious movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

A split, not a type: Light 4 · Serious 2 · Dark 6

Grounded: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their grounded movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

Grounded 8 · Stylized 4 · Heightened 0

Charged: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their charged movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

A split, not a type: Gentle 1 · Charged 4 · Intense 7

Shifting: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their shifting movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

Steady 5 · Shifting 6 · Whiplash 1

Straight-faced: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their straight-faced movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

Straight-faced 11 · Some laughs 1 · Funny 0

Even-paced: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their even-paced movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 3 · Even-paced 6 · Relentless 3

Engaged: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their engaged movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

A split, not a type: Casual 5 · Engaged 3 · Full focus 4

Affecting: How much it costs you emotionally; whether you need recovery time. Browse their affecting movies.
Demand · Emotional cost
easyheavy

A split, not a type: Easy watch 4 · Affecting 3 · Heavy 5

Resolved: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their resolved movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

Resolved 6 · Open-ended 6 · Ambiguous 0

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Tense
12
Melancholic
6
Thrilling
6
Dread
4
Contemplative
4
Other
6

How their films linger

Unsettling4 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFun3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteBittersweet4 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHopeful3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteInfuriating3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteThought-provoking3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end · 3 with a twist

  • Happy4
  • Bittersweet5
  • Ambiguous4

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch Gavin Hood's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 11 of their 15 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Tubi (7).

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Gavin Hood's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

21 credits, 15 with a MovieCove page; 3 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.

  • Official Secrets(2019)

    Director · Executive Producer · Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 90th percentile of all films

  • Muerte Es Vida: Death Is Life(2016)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 55th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)

  • Eye in the Sky(2015)

    Director · as Lieutenant Colonel Ed Walsh

    Midcredits score: 88th percentile of all films

  • Ender's Game(2013)

    Director · Screenplay · as Giant

    Midcredits score: 63rd percentile of all films

  • X-Men Origins: Wolverine(2009)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 54th percentile of all films

  • Rendition(2007)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 66th percentile of all films

  • Tsotsi(2005)

    Director · Writer

    Midcredits score: 86th percentile of all films

  • King Solomon's Mines(2004)

    Show 2 episodes · as Bruce McNabb

    Midcredits score: 11th percentile of all shows

  • In Enemy Hands(2004)

    as Achilles Captain

    Midcredits score: 42nd percentile of all films

  • In Desert and Wilderness (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2001)

    Director · Screenplay

  • Traitor's Heart(1999)

    as Roberts

    Midcredits score: 4th percentile of all films

  • A Reasonable Man (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1999)

    Director · Writer · as Sean Raine

  • Operation Delta Force 3: Clear Target(1998)

    as Sparks

    Midcredits score: 46th percentile of all films

  • Operation Delta Force 2: Mayday(1997)

    as Sparks

    Midcredits score: 5th percentile of all films

  • The Storekeeper (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1998)

    Director · Producer · Writer

  • Stargate SG-1(1997)

    Show 1 episode · as Colonel Alexi Vaselov

    Midcredits score: 96th percentile of all shows

  • Live Wire: Human Timebomb (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1996)

    as Mike

  • Project Shadowchaser II (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1994)

    as Tieg

  • American Kickboxer(1991)

    as Ken Holligan

    Midcredits score: 6th percentile of all films

  • Curse III: Blood Sacrifice(1991)

    as Robert

    Midcredits score: 5th percentile of all films

  • The Test (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Director · Screenplay

Career shape

A full career of 20 titles, 19 of them dated from 1991 to 2019.

Biggest box office

X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009)

$373M worldwide

Highest rated

Official Secrets (2019)

Midcredits 90th

Most popular right now

Ender's Game (2013)

Film career

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting13 of 20: 10 only acting, 3 with another role · typical Midcredits score27thDirecting10 of 20: 2 only directing, 8 with another role · typical Midcredits score76thWriting7 of 20: 0 only writing, 7 with another roleProducing2 of 20: 0 only producing, 2 with another role

20 titles, 8 with more than one role — acting and directing overlap on 3 of them.

By decade

1990s10 · 9 acting · 2 crew2000s6 · 2 acting · 4 crew2010s3 · 2 acting · 3 crew

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.

How do Gavin Hood's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 54th percentile, the median of all 13; across their 12 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 50th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

50thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 12

Approval · how many liked their films

66thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 12

Reach · how many have seen their films

69thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 12

Midcredits score across 15 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up4
  • 50th to 74th4
  • 25th to 49th2
  • Below 25th5

Shape of the crowd

6 of their 15 titles are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved1
  • Universally Panned1
  • Cult Classic1
  • Crowd Pleaser6
  • Broadly Agreed1
  • Mixed5

Most divisive · actor

Traitor's Heart (1999)

81st percentile spread · 62% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · director, writer, producer

Official Secrets (2019)

Midcredits 90th · 82% liked

Reviewers score the acting 57/100 in their films, across 11 reviewed titles; fans 76, detractors 36. The element that speaks to their work as an actor.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.

Is Gavin Hood's work okay for kids?

Across up to 6 MovieCove titles with content scores, violence & gore, profanity and frightening / intense run heavier than most films and alcohol & drugs lighter.

Their medianMedian of all filmsMiddle 80% of their titles
Violence & Gore6 titles26–72 · median 65 · intenseheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 44
Sex & Nudity6 titles6–31 · median 24 · mildnear the median of all filmsMedian of all films: 32
Profanity5 titles33–62 · median 55 · moderateheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 36
Alcohol & Drugs6 titles4–38 · median 21 · mildlighter than most filmsMedian of all films: 33
Frightening / Intense5 titles33–69 · median 64 · intenseheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 39

Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted. The band's colour is the severity of their median, named beside it.

Who does Gavin Hood work with?

People who share at least 2 of Gavin Hood's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Mark Kilian shares the most, 5.

Writers

Actors

Composers, cinematographers and editors

Producers

Mixed roles