Born in Los Angeles in 1957 to immigrants, Hwang is a successful playwright. He graduated from Stanford University in 1979 and attended Yale in 1980. He is most famous for M. Butterfly (1993), which was adapted for the screen in 1993, directed by David Cronenberg and starring Jeremy Irons and John Lone.
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Biography from IMDb.
- August 11, 1957 (69)
- Los Angeles, California, USA
- Writer, actor and producer
- 7 on MovieCove · 19 credits in all
What are David Henry Hwang's films like?
Across their 7 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Morality and Bonds.
Themes
What they feel like to watch
Ironic 0 · Wry 0 · Earnest 6
A split, not a type: Light 1 · Serious 2 · Dark 3
Grounded 4 · Stylized 2 · Heightened 0
Gentle 1 · Charged 5 · Intense 0
Steady 2 · Shifting 4 · Whiplash 0
Straight-faced 6 · Some laughs 0 · Funny 0
Slow burn 3 · Even-paced 3 · Relentless 0
Casual 1 · Engaged 4 · Full focus 1
A split, not a type: Easy watch 1 · Affecting 2 · Heavy 3
A split, not a type: Resolved 4 · Open-ended 1 · Ambiguous 1
Moods and endings
- Happy1
- Bittersweet3
- Tragic1
- 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 David Henry Hwang's films?
As of October 24, 2026, 4 of their 7 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Tubi (3).
Subscription and free streaming for David Henry Hwang'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
19 credits, 7 with a MovieCove page; 8 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.
Broken Rhythm: Bruce Lee's Game of Death (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2026)
Yellow Face (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2025)
Phởmily Feud (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2016)
Bondage (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2015)
The Affair(2014)
Midcredits score: 81st percentile of all shows
White Frog(2012)
Midcredits score: 71st percentile of all films
Unsuk Chin: Alice in Wonderland (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2008)
Masters of the Pillow (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2003)
Possession(2002)
Midcredits score: 51st percentile of all films
The Lost Empire(2001)
Midcredits score: 6th percentile of all shows
Golden Gate(1994)
Midcredits score: 18th percentile of all films
M. Butterfly(1993)
Midcredits score: 68th percentile of all films
Homes Apart: Korea(1991)
Midcredits score: 77th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)
Forbidden Nights (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1990)
Alive from Off Center (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1985)
American Playhouse (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1982)
Great Performances (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1971)
Hunchback (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)
Untitled Anna May Wong biopic (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)
Career shape
A full career of 19 titles, 17 of them dated from 1971 to 2026.
Biggest box office
Possession (2002)
Highest rated
White Frog (2012)
Most popular right now
M. Butterfly (1993)
Film career
- 2013Screen debut· White Frog
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 Henry Hwang's films land?
Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 68th percentile, the median of all 5; across their 6 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 64th percentile for acclaim.
- 75th and up2
- 50th to 74th3
- Below 25th2
Shape of the crowd
4 of their 7 titles are Crowd Pleasers.
- Crowd Pleaser4
- Mixed3
Reviewers score the dialogue 39/100 and the plot and story 48/100 in their films, across 5 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.
Who does David Henry Hwang work with?
People who share at least 2 of David Henry Hwang's MovieCove titles; Joan Chen shares the most, 2.
- Joan ChenShared titles: White Frog (2012), Golden Gate (1994)See all 2 shared titles with Joan Chen
