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David Ayer

David Ayer

Producer, writer, director and actor · Born January 18, 1968 (58) · Champaign, Illinois, USA

David Ayer (born January 18, 1968) is an American filmmaker known for making crime films that are set in Los Angeles and deal with gangs and police corruption. His screenplays include Training Day (2001), The Fast and the Furious (2001), and S.W.A.T. (2003). He has also directed Harsh Times (2005), Street Kings (2008), End of Watch (2012), Sabotage (2014), and The Beekeeper (2024). In 2016, he directed the superhero movie Suicide Squad from the DC Extended Universe and then the urban fantasy film Bright (2017) for Netflix. He has twice collaborated with actor Shia LaBeouf: first with the World War II drama Fury (2014), then the crime thriller The Tax Collector (2020). He has also collaborated with his friend Cle Shaheed Sloan, who has appeared in four of his films. Description above from the Wikipedia article David Ayer, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

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Biography from TMDB.

Born
January 18, 1968 (58)
From
Champaign, Illinois, USA
Works as
Producer, writer, director and actor
Titles
23 on MovieCove · 28 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 155 days to Oct 26Down 31% in 30 days

What are David Ayer's films like?

Across their 22 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Morality and Bonds.

Genres

Action15 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 57th percentile
: browse their Action movies
Documentary3 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 69th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Documentary movies
Crime2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 80th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Crime 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
35%
Bonds
21%
Survival
15%
Power
10%
Ideas
7%
Society
6%
Self
6%
Redemption5 titles, browse their movies with this themeJustice5 titles, browse their movies with this themeLoyalty5 titles, browse their movies with this themeFamily bonds4 titles, browse their movies with this themeCorruption3 titles, browse their movies with this themeBetrayal4 titles, browse their movies with this themeSurvival4 titles, browse their movies with this themeArt3 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 22 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Dark: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their dark movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

Light 4 · Serious 4 · Dark 14

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

A split, not a type: Grounded 14 · Stylized 6 · Heightened 2

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

Gentle 2 · Charged 2 · Intense 18

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

Steady 7 · Shifting 11 · Whiplash 4

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

Straight-faced 15 · Some laughs 6 · Funny 1

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

A split, not a type: Slow burn 3 · Even-paced 9 · Relentless 10

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

Casual 6 · Engaged 11 · Full focus 5

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 8 · Affecting 5 · Heavy 9

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

Resolved 17 · Open-ended 5 · Ambiguous 0

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Tense
18
Thrilling
9
Dread
6
Melancholic
5
Warm
4
Other
12

How their films linger

Fun7 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteThought-provoking6 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteUnsettling6 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteRousing5 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHopeful5 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteBittersweet4 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end · 5 with a twist

  • Happy5
  • Bittersweet14
  • Ambiguous3

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 David Ayer's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 19 of their 23 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Tubi (7).

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for David Ayer'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

28 credits, 23 with a MovieCove page; 6 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.

  • John Doe (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2028)

    Director

  • Heart of the Beast(2026)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 88th percentile of all films

  • A Working Man(2025)

    Director · Producer · Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 33rd percentile of all films

  • Bosco(2024)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 64th percentile of all films

  • The Beekeeper(2024)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 57th percentile of all films

  • Snorkeling (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2023)

    Executive Producer

  • The Suicide Squad(2021)

    Thanks

    Midcredits score: 86th percentile of all films

  • The Tax Collector(2020)

    Director · Producer · Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 17th percentile of all films

  • Birds of Prey and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn(2020)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 48th percentile of all films

  • Deputy(2020)

    Show 13 episodes · Director · Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 36th percentile of all shows

  • Ready for War(2019)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 40th percentile of all films

  • Bright(2017)

    Director · Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 49th percentile of all films

  • Training Day (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2017)

    Show 1 episode · Screenplay

  • Suicide Squad(2016)

    Director · Writer

    Midcredits score: 35th percentile of all films

  • Dawn of the Justice League(2016)

    Actor

    Midcredits score: 76th percentile of all films

  • Fury(2014)

    Director · Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 95th percentile of all films

  • Sabotage(2014)

    Director · Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 25th percentile of all films

  • End of Watch(2012)

    Director · Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 95th percentile of all films

  • Street Kings(2008)

    Director · as NLR member in County Jail (uncredited)

    Midcredits score: 70th percentile of all films

  • Harsh Times(2005)

    Director · Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 71st percentile of all films

  • The Cutting Edge: The Magic of Movie Editing(2004)

    Production Consultant

    Midcredits score: 93rd percentile of all films

  • S.W.A.T.(2003)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 40th percentile of all films

  • Dark Blue(2002)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 62nd percentile of all films

  • Training Day(2001)

    Co-Producer · Screenplay · Stunts · as First Russian Hitman (uncredited)

    Midcredits score: 97th percentile of all films

  • The Fast and the Furious(2001)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 79th percentile of all films

  • U-571(2000)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 68th percentile of all films

  • Six Years (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Director · Producer · Writer

  • The Dirty Dozen (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Director · Producer · Screenplay

Career shape

A full career of 28 titles, 25 of them dated from 2000 to 2026.

Biggest box office

Suicide Squad (2016)

$749M worldwide

Highest rated

Training Day (2001)

Midcredits 97th

Most popular right now

Heart of the Beast (2026)

Film career

  • 2016Screen debut· DC Films Presents Dawn of the Justice League

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting3 of 28: 1 only acting, 2 with another roleDirecting15 of 28: 1 only directing, 14 with another role · typical Midcredits score53rdWriting16 of 28: 5 only writing, 11 with another role · typical Midcredits score62ndProducing16 of 28: 4 only producing, 12 with another role · typical Midcredits score57thOther crew3 of 28: 2 only other crew, 1 with another role

28 titles, 15 with more than one role — producing and writing overlap on 9 of them.

By decade

2000s8 · 2 acting · 8 crew2010s8 · 1 acting · 7 crew2020s9 · 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 David Ayer's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 66th percentile, the median of all 22; across their 22 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 60th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

60thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 22

Approval · how many liked their films

62ndpercentile
Typical film, the median of 22

Reach · how many have seen their films

94thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 22

Midcredits score across 23 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up8
  • 50th to 74th6
  • 25th to 49th8
  • Below 25th1

Shape of the crowd

10 of their 23 titles are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved4
  • Divisive1
  • Cult Classic1
  • Crowd Pleaser10
  • Broadly Agreed3
  • Mixed4

Most divisive · producer

Ready for War (2019)

93rd percentile spread · 35% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · actor, writer, producer

Training Day (2001)

Midcredits 97th · 89% liked

Reviewers score the dialogue 46/100 and the plot and story 41/100 in their films, across 19 reviewed titles. The element that speaks to their work as a writer.

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 David Ayer's work okay for kids?

Across up to 17 MovieCove titles with content scores, violence & gore, profanity, alcohol & drugs and frightening / intense run heavier than most films.

Their medianMedian of all filmsMiddle 80% of their titles
Violence & Gore17 titles58–95 · median 85 · severeheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 44
Sex & Nudity17 titles15–57 · median 39 · moderatenear the median of all filmsMedian of all films: 32
Profanity17 titles62–94 · median 86 · severeheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 36
Alcohol & Drugs17 titles33–81 · median 60 · moderateheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 33
Frightening / Intense16 titles53–86 · median 69 · 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 David Ayer work with?

People who share at least 2 of David Ayer's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Chris Long shares the most, 5.

Directors

Writers

Actors

Composers, cinematographers and editors

Producers

Mixed roles