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Scott Derrickson

Scott Derrickson

Producer, writer and director · Born July 16, 1966 (60) · Denver, Colorado, USA

Primetime Emmy nominee · 1 other major award body

Scott Derrickson (born July 16, 1966) is an American filmmaker. He is known for his work in the horror genre, directing films such as The Exorcism of Emily Rose (2005), Sinister (2012), and The Black Phone (2021). He is also known for the superhero film Doctor Strange (2016) based on the Marvel Comics character. Description above from the Wikipedia article Scott Derrickson, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

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Biography from TMDB.

Born
July 16, 1966 (60)
From
Denver, Colorado, USA
Works as
Producer, writer and director
Titles
19 on MovieCove · 33 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 23% in 30 days

What are Scott Derrickson's films like?

Across their 17 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Survival and Morality.

Genres

Horror7 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 38th percentile
: browse their Horror movies
Action3 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 73rd percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Action movies
Drama3 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 65th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Drama movies
Crime2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 33rd percentile
: 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
Survival
30%
Morality
21%
Self
16%
Society
16%
Bonds
13%
Ideas
3%
Power
1%
Survival6 titles, browse their movies with this themeFamily bonds5 titles, browse their movies with this themeTrauma4 titles, browse their movies with this themePurpose3 titles, browse their movies with this themeJustice3 titles, browse their movies with this themeFaith2 titles, browse their movies with this themeDeception2 titles, browse their movies with this themePrejudice2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 17 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Dark: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their dark movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

Light 1 · Serious 2 · Dark 14

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

Grounded 5 · Stylized 10 · Heightened 2

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

Gentle 0 · Charged 2 · Intense 15

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

Steady 2 · Shifting 8 · Whiplash 7

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

Straight-faced 16 · Some laughs 1 · Funny 0

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

Slow burn 2 · Even-paced 12 · Relentless 3

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

Casual 0 · Engaged 9 · Full focus 8

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

Easy watch 1 · Affecting 5 · Heavy 11

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

Resolved 7 · Open-ended 8 · Ambiguous 2

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Tense
15
Dread
13
Contemplative
5
Melancholic
4
Thrilling
4
Other
8

How their films linger

Unsettling7 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteThought-provoking5 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteBittersweet6 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHaunting5 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHopeful4 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFun3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end · 7 with a twist

  • Bittersweet11
  • Tragic4
  • 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 Scott Derrickson's films?

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

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Scott Derrickson'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

33 credits, 19 with a MovieCove page; 5 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.

  • Black Phone 2(2025)

    Director · Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 49th percentile of all films

  • The Gorge(2025)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 73rd percentile of all films

  • V/H/S/85(2023)

    Director · Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 29th percentile of all films

  • The Black Phone(2021)

    Director · Producer · Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 78th percentile of all films

  • Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness(2022)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 71st percentile of all films

  • Shadowprowler (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2021)

    Director · Executive Producer · Writer

  • No Man of God(2021)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 61st percentile of all films

  • Snowpiercer(2020)

    Show 40 episodes · Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 43rd percentile of all shows

  • My Valentine (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2020)

    Executive Producer

  • Doctor Strange(2016)

    Director · Writer

    Midcredits score: 94th percentile of all films

  • Sinister 2(2015)

    Characters · Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 20th percentile of all films

  • Kristy(2014)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 38th percentile of all films

  • Deliver Us from Evil(2014)

    Director · Writer

    Midcredits score: 45th percentile of all films

  • Misunderstood(2014)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 66th percentile of all films

  • Devil's Knot(2013)

    Executive Producer · Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 42nd percentile of all films

  • Sinister(2012)

    Director · Executive Producer · Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 75th percentile of all films

  • The Day the Earth Stood Still(2008)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 20th percentile of all films

  • The Visitation (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2006)

    Co-Producer

  • The Exorcism of Emily Rose(2005)

    Director · Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 65th percentile of all films

  • Land of Plenty(2004)

    Story

    Midcredits score: 57th percentile of all films

  • Hellraiser: Inferno(2000)

    Director · Writer

    Midcredits score: 21st percentile of all films

  • Urban Legends: Final Cut(2000)

    Writer

    Midcredits score: 5th percentile of all films

  • Love in the Ruins (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1995)

    Director · Editor · Producer · Screenplay · Sound Editor

  • Out of Black and White (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1990)

    Director · Editor · Musician · Writer

  • Bermuda (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Executive Producer · Screenplay

  • Bitter Bitter (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Producer

  • Black Phone 3 (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Producer

  • Ghost Eaters (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Producer

  • Mime (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Producer

  • Retrograde (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Executive Producer

  • Road of Bones (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Director · Producer · Screenplay

  • Room 428 (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Producer

  • The Night of the Hunter (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Director · Screenplay

Career shape

A full career of 33 titles, 24 of them dated from 1990 to 2025.

Biggest box office

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022)

$956M worldwide

Highest rated

Doctor Strange (2016)

Midcredits 94th

Most popular right now

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022)

By role

only this rolewith another role
Directing15 of 33: 1 only directing, 14 with another role · typical Midcredits score57thWriting18 of 33: 2 only writing, 16 with another role · typical Midcredits score47thProducing23 of 33: 13 only producing, 10 with another role · typical Midcredits score61stEditing2 of 33: 0 only editing, 2 with another roleOther crew2 of 33: 0 only other crew, 2 with another role

33 titles, 17 with more than one role — producing and writing overlap on 9 of them.

By decade

1990s2 · crew2000s6 · crew2010s7 · 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.

Awards

2 major nominations and no wins, 2025–2026.

  1. 2026
    • Directors Guild Award, nominated · Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Movies for Television
  2. 2025
    • Primetime Emmy, nominated · Outstanding Television Movie

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 Scott Derrickson's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 53rd percentile, the median of all 18; across their 17 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 52nd percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

52ndpercentile
Typical film, the median of 17

Approval · how many liked their films

49thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 17

Reach · how many have seen their films

93rdpercentile
Typical film, the median of 17

Midcredits score across 19 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up3
  • 50th to 74th6
  • 25th to 49th6
  • Below 25th4

Shape of the crowd

None of their 19 titles divides audiences: 9 are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved1
  • Crowd Pleaser9
  • Broadly Agreed6
  • Mixed3

Most loved · director, writer

Doctor Strange (2016)

Midcredits 94th · 84% liked

Reviewers score the dialogue 43/100 and the plot and story 43/100 in their films, across 17 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 Scott Derrickson's work okay for kids?

Across up to 15 MovieCove titles with content scores, violence & gore, profanity and frightening / intense run heavier than most films and sex & nudity lighter.

Their medianMedian of all filmsMiddle 80% of their titles
Violence & Gore13 titles60–94 · median 89 · severeheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 44
Sex & Nudity15 titles9–49 · median 14 · minimallighter than most filmsMedian of all films: 32
Profanity13 titles33–82 · median 69 · intenseheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 36
Alcohol & Drugs12 titles11–58 · median 35 · mildnear the median of all filmsMedian of all films: 33
Frightening / Intense14 titles59–92 · median 84 · severeheavier 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 Scott Derrickson work with?

People who share at least 2 of Scott Derrickson's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; C. Robert Cargill shares the most, 7.

Writers

Actors

Composers, cinematographers and editors

Producers