Craig Houston Brewer (born December 6, 1971) is an American filmmaker. His 2005 movie Hustle & Flow won the Audience Award at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival and achieved commercial success, along with an Academy Award for Best Original Song, "It's Hard out Here for a Pimp". He is also known for directing the 2011 remake of Footloose, the 2019 film Dolemite Is My Name and the 2021 film Coming 2 America, the latter two films starring Academy Award nominee Eddie Murphy.
Read moreShow less
Biography from TMDB.
- December 6, 1971 (54)
- Richmond, Virginia, USA
- Director, writer and producer, also actor
- 12 on Motif · 20 credits in all
What are Craig Brewer's films like?
Across their 9 Motif titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Self and Bonds.
Genres
Their Motif 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
Ironic 0 · Wry 0 · Earnest 9
A split, not a type: Light 5 · Serious 1 · Dark 3
A split, not a type: Grounded 4 · Stylized 3 · Heightened 2
Gentle 2 · Charged 4 · Intense 3
Steady 4 · Shifting 4 · Whiplash 1
Straight-faced 3 · Some laughs 4 · Funny 2
Slow burn 4 · Even-paced 4 · Relentless 1
Casual 7 · Engaged 2 · Full focus 0
A split, not a type: Easy watch 5 · Affecting 2 · Heavy 2
Resolved 9 · Open-ended 0 · Ambiguous 0
Moods and endings
- Happy6
- Bittersweet3
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 Craig Brewer's films?
As of October 24, 2026, 8 of their 12 Motif titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Tubi (3).
Subscription and free streaming for Craig Brewer's titles on Motif; 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
20 credits, 12 with a Motif page; 3 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.
Snoop (not in the Motif catalog yet)(2027)
Song Sung Blue(2025)
Midcredits score: 87th percentile of all films
Midcredits score: 67th percentile of all shows
Coming 2 America(2021)
Midcredits score: 21st percentile of all filmsYellow River (not in the Motif catalog yet)(2020)
Dolemite Is My Name(2019)
Midcredits score: 88th percentile of all films
The Legend of Tarzan(2016)
Midcredits score: 44th percentile of all films
The Invaders (not in the Motif catalog yet)(2015)
Empire(2015)
Midcredits score: 67th percentile of all shows
Indie Origins(2012)
Katy Perry: Part of Me(2012)
Midcredits score: 65th percentile of all films
Footloose(2011)
Midcredits score: 48th percentile of all films
Black Snake Moan(2006)
Midcredits score: 74th percentile of all films
Hustle & Flow(2005)
Midcredits score: 89th percentile of all filmsResolutions of the Complacent Man (not in the Motif catalog yet)(2004)
Water's Edge (not in the Motif catalog yet)(2003)
The Shield(2002)
Midcredits score: 98th percentile of all shows
Pressure (not in the Motif catalog yet)(2002)
The Poor & Hungry (not in the Motif catalog yet)(2000)
American Pride (not in the Motif catalog yet)
Career shape
A full career of 20 titles, 18 of them dated from 2000 to 2025.
Biggest box office
The Legend of Tarzan (2016)
Highest rated
Hustle & Flow (2005)
Most popular right now
The Legend of Tarzan (2016)
By role
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 Motif, shown from 5 scored.
Awards
1 major award from 2 major nominations, 2005.
- Sundance award, won · Dramatic
- Sundance award, nominated · Dramatic
Major bodies only: the Oscars, Primetime Emmys, Golden Globes, BAFTAs and Screen Actors Guild Awards are named; Cannes, Venice, the Berlinale, Sundance, the directors', writers' and producers' guilds, the Grammys, Critics Choice and the Independent Spirit Awards count as other major bodies. Festival and regional prizes are not counted. Source: IMDb.
How do Craig Brewer's films land?
Their typical Motif film has a Midcredits score in the 70th percentile, the median of the 8 of 9 with a score; across their 8 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 69th percentile for acclaim.
- 75th and up4
- 50th to 74th4
- 25th to 49th2
- Below 25th1
Shape of the crowd
6 of their 11 titles are Crowd Pleasers.
- Universally Loved1
- Cult Classic1
- Crowd Pleaser6
- Mixed3
Reviewers score the atmosphere 66/100 and the pacing 45/100 in their films, across 8 reviewed titles. The element that speaks to their work as a director.
Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on Motif; 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 Motif 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 Craig Brewer's work okay for kids?
Across up to 7 Motif titles with content scores, sex & nudity and profanity 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 Craig Brewer work with?
People who share at least 2 of Craig Brewer's Motif titles, grouped by what they did on them; Billy Fox shares the most, 5.
Actors
- Eddie MurphyShared titles: Coming 2 America (2021), Dolemite Is My Name (2019)See all 2 shared titles with Eddie Murphy
- Wesley SnipesShared titles: Coming 2 America (2021), Dolemite Is My Name (2019)See all 2 shared titles with Wesley Snipes
- Samuel L. JacksonShared titles: The Legend of Tarzan (2016), Black Snake Moan (2006)See all 2 shared titles with Samuel L. Jackson
Composers, cinematographers and editors
- Billy FoxShared titles: Coming 2 America (2021), Dolemite Is My Name (2019), Footloose (2011), Black Snake Moan (2006), Hustle & Flow (2005)See all 5 shared titles with Billy Fox
- Scott BomarShared titles: Dolemite Is My Name (2019), Black Snake Moan (2006), Hustle & Flow (2005)See all 3 shared titles with Scott Bomar
- Amy VincentShared titles: Footloose (2011), Black Snake Moan (2006), Hustle & Flow (2005)See all 3 shared titles with Amy Vincent
Producers
- John DavisShared titles: Song Sung Blue (2025), Dolemite Is My Name (2019)See all 2 shared titles with John Davis
- John FoxShared titles: Song Sung Blue (2025), Dolemite Is My Name (2019)See all 2 shared titles with John Fox
- Charisse M. HewittShared titles: Coming 2 America (2021), Dolemite Is My Name (2019)See all 2 shared titles with Charisse M. Hewitt
- Rob SmithShared titles: Coming 2 America (2021), Dolemite Is My Name (2019)See all 2 shared titles with Rob Smith
