Keenen Ivory Desuma Wayans (/ˈweɪ.ənz/ WAY-ənz; born June 8, 1958) is an American actor, comedian, and filmmaker. He is a member of the Wayans family of entertainers. Wayans first came to prominence as the host and creator of the 1990–1994 Fox sketch comedy series In Living Color. He has produced, directed or written several films, starting with Hollywood Shuffle, which he cowrote, in 1987. Most of his films have included him and one or more of his siblings in the cast. One of these films, Scary Movie (2000), which Wayans directed, was the highest-grossing movie directed by an African American until it was surpassed by Tim Story's Fantastic Four in 2005. From 1997 to 1998, he hosted the talk show The Keenen Ivory Wayans Show. In 2014, he was a judge for the eighth season of Last Comic Standing. Description above from the Wikipedia article Keenen Ivory Wayans, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
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Biography from TMDB.
- June 8, 1958 (68)
- New York City, New York, USA
- Actor, writer, producer and director
- 24 on MovieCove · 33 credits in all
What are Keenen Ivory Wayans' films like?
Across their 18 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Society and Bonds.
Genres
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
What they feel like to watch
A split, not a type: Ironic 7 · Wry 2 · Earnest 8
Light 14 · Serious 3 · Dark 1
A split, not a type: Grounded 5 · Stylized 5 · Heightened 8
Gentle 6 · Charged 8 · Intense 4
Steady 5 · Shifting 9 · Whiplash 4
Straight-faced 1 · Some laughs 4 · Funny 13
Slow burn 2 · Even-paced 9 · Relentless 7
Casual 13 · Engaged 4 · Full focus 1
Easy watch 14 · Affecting 4 · Heavy 0
Resolved 18 · Open-ended 0 · Ambiguous 0
Roles they play
Usually the Hero: 3 of 5 analyzed roles.
- Tricksteras Donald in Hollywood Shuffle (1987)
- Heroas Jack Spade in I'm Gonna Git You Sucka (1988)
- Heroas Shame in A Low Down Dirty Shame (1994)
- Allyas Det. Jim Campbell in The Glimmer Man (1996)
- Heroas James Dunn in Most Wanted (1997)
Moods and endings
- Happy13
- Bittersweet3
- Ambiguous2
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 Keenen Ivory Wayans' films?
As of October 24, 2026, 16 of their 24 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service.
- Hollywood Shuffle (1987) · actor, writer · free
- I'm Gonna Git You Sucka (1988) · actor, director, writer · free
- Scary Movie (2000) · actor, director, producer · free
- A Low Down Dirty Shame (1994) · actor, director, writer · free
- Most Wanted (1997) · actor, writer, producer · free
- Little Man (2006) · director, writer, producer · free
Subscription and free streaming for Keenen Ivory Wayans' 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
33 credits, 24 with a MovieCove page; 12 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.
Scary Movie(2026)
Midcredits score: 16th percentile of all films
Before They Were Kings: Vol. 2 (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2019)
Dance Flick(2009)
Midcredits score: 6th percentile of all films
Little Man(2006)
Midcredits score: 16th percentile of all films
Thugaboo: Sneaker Madness (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2006)
Midcredits score: 26th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)
White Chicks(2004)
Midcredits score: 62nd percentile of all films
Scary Movie 2(2001)
Midcredits score: 27th percentile of all films
My Wife and Kids(2000)
Midcredits score: 53rd percentile of all shows
Scary Movie(2000)
Midcredits score: 58th percentile of all films
Most Wanted(1997)
Midcredits score: 26th percentile of all films
The Glimmer Man(1996)
Midcredits score: 19th percentile of all films
Midcredits score: 69th percentile of all films
A Low Down Dirty Shame(1994)
Midcredits score: 44th percentile of all films
The Real Malcolm X(1992)
Midcredits score: 69th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)
The Five Heartbeats(1991)
Midcredits score: 93rd percentile of all films
Hammer, Slammer, & Slade (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1990)
In Living Color (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1990)
I'm Gonna Git You Sucka(1988)
Midcredits score: 66th percentile of all films
Robert Townsend: Partners in Crime: Vol. 1 (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1987)
Eddie Murphy: Raw(1987)
Midcredits score: 92nd percentile of all films
Joe Piscopo Live!(1987)
Midcredits score: 15th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)
A Different World(1987)
Midcredits score: 54th percentile of all shows
Hollywood Shuffle(1987)
Midcredits score: 79th percentile of all films
Star 80(1983)
Midcredits score: 72nd percentile of all films
For Love and Honor(1983)
Midcredits score: 55th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)For Love and Honor (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1983)
Cheers(1982)
Midcredits score: 86th percentile of all showsHighway Honeys (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1982)
Hill Street Blues(1981)
Midcredits score: 92nd percentile of all shows
CHiPs(1977)
Midcredits score: 27th percentile of all showsDon't Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood sequel (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)
White Chicks 2 (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)
Career shape
Star power in the 95th percentile of 239,109 people with a billed film role, over a full career of 32 titles, 30 of them dated from 1977 to 2026; peak year 1995.
Biggest box office
Scary Movie (2000)
Highest rated
The Five Heartbeats (1991)
Most popular right now
Scary Movie (2026)
Film career
Peak 1995 · fewer prominent film roles lately. Top draw in 3 MovieCove titles. Film roles by billing, audience size and rating; 25+ votes. A show carries a single first-air date, so shows are not on the curve.
- 1983Screen debut· Star 80
- 1988First top-billed film· I'm Gonna Git You Sucka
Billing
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. Billing is TMDB cast order for roles with 25+ votes, billed in the top 30.
How do Keenen Ivory Wayans' films land?
Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 55th percentile, the median of all 19; across their 18 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 53rd percentile for acclaim.
- 75th and up5
- 50th to 74th9
- 25th to 49th5
- Below 25th5
Shape of the crowd
10 of their 24 titles are Mixed.
- Universally Loved3
- Divisive3
- Crowd Pleaser8
- Mixed10
Reviewers score the acting 58/100 in their films, across 14 reviewed titles; fans 71, detractors 32. 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 Keenen Ivory Wayans' work okay for kids?
Across up to 10 MovieCove titles with content scores, violence & gore, sex & nudity, profanity and alcohol & drugs run heavier than most films.
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 Keenen Ivory Wayans work with?
People who share at least 2 of Keenen Ivory Wayans' MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Marlon Wayans shares the most, 8.
Directors
- Robert TownsendShared titles: The Five Heartbeats (1991), Eddie Murphy: Raw (1987), Hollywood Shuffle (1987)See all 3 shared titles with Robert Townsend
Writers
- Marlon WayansShared titles: Scary Movie (2026), Dance Flick (2009), A Boo Crew Christmas: A Miracle on D-Roc's Street (2006), Little Man (2006), White Chicks (2004), Scary Movie 2 (2001), Scary Movie (2000), Don't Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood (1996)See all 8 shared titles with Marlon Wayans
- Shawn WayansShared titles: Scary Movie (2026), Dance Flick (2009), A Boo Crew Christmas: A Miracle on D-Roc's Street (2006), Little Man (2006), White Chicks (2004), Scary Movie 2 (2001), Scary Movie (2000), Don't Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood (1996)See all 8 shared titles with Shawn Wayans
- Craig WayansShared titles: Scary Movie (2026), Dance Flick (2009), Scary Movie 2 (2001)See all 3 shared titles with Craig Wayans
- Michael Anthony SnowdenShared titles: A Boo Crew Christmas: A Miracle on D-Roc's Street (2006), White Chicks (2004), Scary Movie 2 (2001)See all 3 shared titles with Michael Anthony Snowden
Actors
- Lochlyn MunroShared titles: A Boo Crew Christmas: A Miracle on D-Roc's Street (2006), Little Man (2006), White Chicks (2004), Scary Movie (2000)See all 4 shared titles with Lochlyn Munro
- Dave SheridanShared titles: Scary Movie (2026), Little Man (2006), Scary Movie (2000)See all 3 shared titles with Dave Sheridan
- David Alan GrierShared titles: Dance Flick (2009), A Boo Crew Christmas: A Miracle on D-Roc's Street (2006), Little Man (2006)See all 3 shared titles with David Alan Grier
- Charlie MurphyShared titles: Eddie Murphy: One Night Only (2012), A Boo Crew Christmas: A Miracle on D-Roc's Street (2006)See all 2 shared titles with Charlie Murphy
Composers, cinematographers and editors
- Steven BernsteinShared titles: Little Man (2006), White Chicks (2004), Scary Movie 2 (2001)See all 3 shared titles with Steven Bernstein
- Teddy CastellucciShared titles: Little Man (2006), White Chicks (2004)See all 2 shared titles with Teddy Castellucci
- Mark HelfrichShared titles: Scary Movie (2000), Most Wanted (1997)See all 2 shared titles with Mark Helfrich
Producers
- Eric L. GoldShared titles: Scary Movie 2 (2001), Scary Movie (2000), Most Wanted (1997), Don't Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood (1996), A Low Down Dirty Shame (1994), I'm Gonna Git You Sucka (1988)See all 6 shared titles with Eric L. Gold
- Lee R. MayesShared titles: Little Man (2006), White Chicks (2004), Scary Movie 2 (2001), Scary Movie (2000), A Low Down Dirty Shame (1994)See all 5 shared titles with Lee R. Mayes
- Bob WeinsteinShared titles: Scary Movie 2 (2001), Scary Movie (2000)See all 2 shared titles with Bob Weinstein
- Harvey WeinsteinShared titles: Scary Movie 2 (2001), Scary Movie (2000)See all 2 shared titles with Harvey Weinstein
Mixed roles
- Michael TiddesShared titles: Scary Movie (2026), Dance Flick (2009)See all 2 shared titles with Michael Tiddes
- Eddie MurphyShared titles: Eddie Murphy: One Night Only (2012), Eddie Murphy: Raw (1987)See all 2 shared titles with Eddie Murphy
