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W.R. Burnett

W.R. Burnett

Writer · Died April 25, 1982, aged 82 · Springfield, Ohio, USA

Born
November 25, 1899
Died
April 25, 1982 (aged 82)
From
Springfield, Ohio, USA
Works as
Writer
Titles
37 on MovieCove · 56 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 38 days to Oct 27Down 16% in 30 days

What are W.R. Burnett's films like?

Across their 35 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Morality and Bonds.

Genres

Crime13 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 67th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Crime movies
Drama10 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 67th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Drama movies
Action4 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 88th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Action movies
Adventure4 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 63rd percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Adventure movies
Comedy2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 33rd percentile
: browse their Comedy movies
Western2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 56th percentile
: browse their Western 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
48%
Bonds
19%
Survival
11%
Self
8%
Power
8%
Ideas
3%
Society
2%
Justice15 titles, browse their movies with this themeDeception7 titles, browse their movies with this themeRomantic love7 titles, browse their movies with this themeRedemption7 titles, browse their movies with this themeLoyalty7 titles, browse their movies with this themeSurvival7 titles, browse their movies with this themeAmbition5 titles, browse their movies with this themeBetrayal5 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 35 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Stylized: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their stylized movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

A split, not a type: Grounded 21 · Stylized 13 · Heightened 1

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

Gentle 2 · Charged 23 · Intense 10

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

Steady 11 · Shifting 23 · Whiplash 1

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

Straight-faced 25 · Some laughs 7 · Funny 3

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

Slow burn 5 · Even-paced 26 · Relentless 4

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

Casual 11 · Engaged 22 · Full focus 2

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

Easy watch 12 · Affecting 18 · Heavy 5

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

Resolved 30 · Open-ended 4 · Ambiguous 1

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Tense
33
Melancholic
17
Thrilling
9
Dread
7
Romantic
6
Other
19

How their films linger

Bittersweet15 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteRousing10 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHaunting9 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFeel-good7 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFun7 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHopeful7 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end · 2 with a twist

  • Happy7
  • Bittersweet19
  • Tragic7
  • 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 W.R. Burnett's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 9 of their 37 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Tubi (5).

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for W.R. Burnett'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

56 credits, 37 with a MovieCove page.

  • Cool Breeze (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1972)

    Novel

  • Stiletto (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1969)

    Writer

  • Ice Station Zebra(1968)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 64th percentile of all films

  • The Jackals (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1967)

    Story

  • 4 for Texas(1963)

    Writer

    Midcredits score: 23rd percentile of all films

  • Cairo (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1963)

    Novel

  • The Great Escape(1963)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 99th percentile of all films

  • Sergeants 3(1962)

    Writer

    Midcredits score: 43rd percentile of all films

  • The Lawbreakers (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1961)

    Writer

  • The Asphalt Jungle (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1961)

    Show 14 episodes · Novel

  • September Storm(1960)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 16th percentile of all films

  • The Hangman(1959)

    Writer

    Midcredits score: 65th percentile of all films

  • The Badlanders(1958)

    Novel

    Midcredits score: 58th percentile of all films

  • Short Cut to Hell(1957)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 40th percentile of all films

  • Accused of Murder(1956)

    Novel · Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 23rd percentile of all films

  • Rookie of the Year (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1955)

    Writer

  • I Died a Thousand Times(1955)

    Novel · Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 55th percentile of all films

  • Illegal(1955)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 79th percentile of all films

  • Screen Director's Playhouse (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1955)

    Show 1 episode · Story

  • Captain Lightfoot (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1955)

    Novel · Writer

  • Night People(1954)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 62nd percentile of all films

  • Dangerous Mission(1954)

    Writer

    Midcredits score: 32nd percentile of all films

  • Arrowhead(1953)

    Novel

    Midcredits score: 40th percentile of all films

  • Law and Order(1953)

    Novel

    Midcredits score: 42nd percentile of all films

  • The Racket(1951)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 68th percentile of all films

  • Iron Man(1951)

    Novel

    Midcredits score: 44th percentile of all films

  • Vendetta (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1950)

    Screenplay

  • The Asphalt Jungle(1950)

    Novel

    Midcredits score: 97th percentile of all films

  • Colorado Territory(1949)

    Novel

    Midcredits score: 88th percentile of all films

  • Yellow Sky(1948)

    Story

    Midcredits score: 90th percentile of all films

  • Belle Starr's Daughter(1948)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 22nd percentile of all films

  • The Man I Love(1946)

    Additional Writing · Writer

    Midcredits score: 68th percentile of all films

  • Nobody Lives Forever(1946)

    Novel · Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 80th percentile of all films

  • San Antonio (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1945)

    Screenplay

  • Background to Danger(1943)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 59th percentile of all films

  • Action in the North Atlantic(1943)

    Additional Dialogue · Writer

    Midcredits score: 79th percentile of all films

  • Crash Dive(1943)

    Story

    Midcredits score: 59th percentile of all films

  • Wake Island (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1942)

    Screenplay · Story

  • This Gun for Hire(1942)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 89th percentile of all films

  • The Get-Away (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1941)

    Screenplay

  • High Sierra(1941)

    Novel · Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 92nd percentile of all films

  • Law and Order (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1940)

    Screenplay

  • Dark Command(1940)

    Novel

    Midcredits score: 72nd percentile of all films

  • The Westerner(1940)

    Writer

    Midcredits score: 88th percentile of all films

  • King of the Underworld(1939)

    Story

    Midcredits score: 55th percentile of all films

  • Some Blondes Are Dangerous (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1937)

    Novel

  • Wild West Days (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1937)

    Novel

  • 36 Hours to Kill(1936)

    Writer

    Midcredits score: 37th percentile of all films

  • Dr. Socrates (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1935)

    Story

  • The Whole Town's Talking(1935)

    Story

    Midcredits score: 89th percentile of all films

  • Dark Hazard (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1934)

    Novel

  • Scarface(1932)

    Continuity · Dialogue

    Midcredits score: 95th percentile of all films

  • The Beast of the City(1932)

    Story

    Midcredits score: 67th percentile of all films

  • Law and Order(1932)

    Novel

    Midcredits score: 70th percentile of all films

  • The Finger Points (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1931)

    Writer

  • Little Caesar(1931)

    Novel

    Midcredits score: 84th percentile of all films

Career shape

A full career of 53 titles from 1931 to 1972.

Biggest box office

The Great Escape (1963)

$233K worldwide

Highest rated

The Great Escape (1963)

Midcredits 99th

By role

only this rolewith another role
Writing51 of 53: 50 only writing, 1 with another role · typical Midcredits score63rdOther crew3 of 53: 2 only other crew, 1 with another role

By decade

1930s11 · crew1940s15 · crew1950s16 · crew1960s10 · crew1970s1 · 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 W.R. Burnett's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 65th percentile, the median of all 37; across their 35 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 62nd percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

62ndpercentile
Typical film, the median of 35

Approval · how many liked their films

65thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 35

Reach · how many have seen their films

59thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 35

Midcredits score across 37 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up13
  • 50th to 74th13
  • 25th to 49th7
  • Below 25th4

Shape of the crowd

22 of their 37 titles are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved4
  • Crowd Pleaser22
  • Broadly Agreed7
  • Mixed4

Most divisive · writer

September Storm (1960)

50th percentile spread · 37% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · writer

The Great Escape (1963)

Midcredits 99th · 91% liked

Reviewers score the dialogue 59/100 and the plot and story 52/100 in their films, across 35 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 W.R. Burnett's work okay for kids?

Across a limited sample of up to 4 MovieCove titles with content scores.

Their medianMedian of all films
Violence & Gore4 titlesmedian 42 · moderateMedian of all films: 44
Sex & Nudity4 titlesmedian 14 · minimalMedian of all films: 32
Profanity4 titlesmedian 20 · mildMedian of all films: 36
Alcohol & Drugs3 titlesmedian 35 · moderateMedian of all films: 33

Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted.

Who does W.R. Burnett work with?

People who share at least 2 of W.R. Burnett's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Raoul Walsh shares the most, 6.

Directors

Writers

Actors

Composers, cinematographers and editors

Producers