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Timothy Balme

Timothy Balme

Actor and writer · Born January 18, 1967 (59) · New Zealand

Timothy Guy Balme (born January 18, 1967), also known as Tim Balme, is an actor and screenwriter from New Zealand. He's most well known for his roles on the long-running soap opera Shortland Street and Mercy Peak, as well as lead roles in the cult favourites Braindead and Jack Brown Genius. He most recently was a writer and actor on the television series The Almighty Johnsons. Balme is married to actress Katie Wolfe, with whom he has two children; daughter Edie (born 2001) and son Nikau (born 2005). Balme also has a son, Sam (born 1987) from a previous relationship. Balme graduated from Toi Whakaari in 1989, and his first lead role was in the 1992 film Braindead (aka Dead Alive). Balme and his wife, along with Simon Bennett and Robyn Malcolm, founded the New Zealand Actors' Company, which ran for three productions before being dissolved. An actor for the better part of twenty years, he has recently branched out into writing, and has scripted episodes for television series such as Diplomatic Immunity and Outrageous Fortune. Balme also wrote the short film Redemption, directed by his wife, which was selected as part of the short film line-up at the Sundance Film Festival for 2011. Balme worked as the head of development for South Pacific Pictures for three years before returning to freelancing. He currently writes for shows such as the popular Channel 7 drama 800 Words and is head writer for the murder mystery series The Brokenwood Mysteries. In 2015 he won the Best Television Screenplay award at the SWANZ (NZ Writer's Guild Awards) for Brokenwood Ep 2 "Sour Grapes". From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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Biography from TMDB.

Born
January 18, 1967 (59)
From
New Zealand
Works as
Actor and writer
Titles
10 on MovieCove · 25 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Official site (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 157 days to Oct 28Up 2% in 30 days

What are Timothy Balme's films like?

Across their 8 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Self and Bonds.

Themes

share of theme weight
Self
26%
Bonds
23%
Society
21%
Survival
15%
Morality
7%
Ideas
5%
Power
3%
Identity4 titles, browse their movies with this themeFamily bonds3 titles, browse their movies with this themeGrief2 titles, browse their movies with this themeRomantic love2 titles, browse their movies with this themeCommunity2 titles, browse their movies with this themeIsolation2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 3 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 1 · Serious 0 · Dark 2

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

A split, not a type: Grounded 1 · Stylized 0 · Heightened 2

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

Gentle 0 · Charged 1 · Intense 2

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

A split, not a type: Steady 1 · Shifting 0 · Whiplash 2

Some laughs: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their some laughs movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

A split, not a type: Straight-faced 2 · Some laughs 0 · Funny 1

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

Slow burn 1 · Even-paced 1 · Relentless 1

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

A split, not a type: Casual 1 · Engaged 2 · Full focus 0

Open-ended: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their open-ended movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

Resolved 1 · Open-ended 1 · Ambiguous 1

Roles they play

2 analyzed roles

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Tense
3
Warm
3
Dread
2
Contemplative
2
Absurd
2
Other
9

How their films linger

Feel-good4 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteThought-provoking3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHopeful3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFun2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHaunting2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end

  • Happy2
  • Bittersweet3
  • Ambiguous2
  • Other1

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 Timothy Balme's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 7 of their 10 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service.

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Timothy Balme'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

25 credits, 10 with a MovieCove page; 2 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.

  • The Haka Party Incident (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2024)

    Producer

  • Under the Vines(2021)

    Show Writer

    Midcredits score: 56th percentile of all shows

  • The Sounds(2020)

    Show Writer

    Midcredits score: 33rd percentile of all shows

  • Modern Dinosaurs(2017)

    Show as Narrator

    Midcredits score: 66th percentile of all shows (provisional, few ratings)

  • 800 Words(2015)

    Show 6 episodes · Writer

    Midcredits score: 86th percentile of all shows

  • The Brokenwood Mysteries(2014)

    Show 10 episodes · Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 89th percentile of all shows

  • The Almighty Johnsons(2011)

    Show 36 episodes · as Mike Johnson

    Midcredits score: 91st percentile of all shows

  • Stolen (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2010)

    Writer

  • No Reason(2010)

    as Pathologist #1

    Midcredits score: 9th percentile of all films

  • Redemption (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2010)

    Screenplay

  • Maddigan's Quest (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2006)

    Show 13 episodes · Actor

  • Not Only But Always(2004)

    as NY Club Compere (as Tim Balme)

    Midcredits score: 80th percentile of all films

  • Deceit (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2004)

    as Kevin Ordell

  • For Good (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2003)

    as Grant Wilson

  • Border Patrol (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2002)

    Show 155 episodes · as Narrator (voice)

  • The Vector File (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2002)

    as Paul

  • Mercy Peak (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2001)

    Show 60 episodes · Actor

  • Dark Stories: Tales from Beyond the Grave (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2001)

    as Barry / Priest (segment 'La vie en rose') · as (segment 'Headlong')

  • Via Satellite (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1998)

    as Ken

  • Jack Brown: Genius (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1996)

    as Jack Brown

  • Headlong (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1996)

    as Arthur

  • The Last Tattoo(1994)

    as Jim Mitchell

    Midcredits score: 33rd percentile of all films

  • La Vie en Rose (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1994)

    as Barry / Priest

  • Braindead(1992)

    as Lionel

    Midcredits score: 91st percentile of all films

  • Shortland Street (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1992)

    Show 501 episodes · as Greg Feeney

Career shape

Star power in the 85th percentile of 239,109 people with a billed film role, over a full career of 22 titles from 1992 to 2024.

Biggest box office

Braindead (1992)

$243K worldwide

Highest rated

Braindead (1992)

Midcredits 91st

Most popular right now

800 Words (2015)

Film career

  • 1992Screen debut· Braindead
  • 1992First top-billed film· Braindead

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting17 of 22: 17 only acting, 0 with another role · typical Midcredits score80thWriting4 of 22: 3 only writing, 1 with another roleProducing2 of 22: 1 only producing, 1 with another role

By decade

1990s7 · acting2000s8 · acting2010s6 · 2 acting · 4 crew2020s1 · 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 Timothy Balme's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 57th percentile, the median of all 4; across a limited sample of 3 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 31st percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

31stpercentile
Typical film, the median of 3

Approval · how many liked their films

36thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 3

Reach · how many have seen their films

45thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 3

Midcredits score across 10 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up5
  • 50th to 74th2
  • 25th to 49th2
  • Below 25th1

Shape of the crowd

5 of their 10 titles are Universally Loved.

  • Universally Loved5
  • Cult Classic1
  • Crowd Pleaser1
  • Mixed3

Most divisive · actor

No Reason (2010)

72nd percentile spread · 54% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · actor

Braindead (1992)

Midcredits 91st · 79% liked

Reviewers score the acting 52/100 in their films, across 3 reviewed titles; fans 63, detractors 25. 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 Timothy Balme's work okay for kids?

Across up to 5 MovieCove titles with content scores, sex & nudity runs heavier than most films.

Their medianMedian of all filmsMiddle 80% of their titles
Sex & Nudity5 titles45–82 · median 50 · moderateheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 32
Profanity3 titlesmedian 38 · moderateMedian of all films: 36

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 Timothy Balme work with?

People who share at least 2 of Timothy Balme's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Harry McNaughton shares the most, 2.

Writers

Actors

Composers, cinematographers and editors

Producers

Mixed roles