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Rockne S. O'Bannon

Rockne S. O'Bannon

Writer and producer, also director · Born January 12, 1955 (71) · Los Angeles, California, USA

Rockne S. O'Bannon is a television producer and writer. He is the creator of the science fiction movie Alien Nation, television shows seaQuest DSV, The Triangle and Farscape. He is married with one daughter and two sons - all three children adopted from Russia. He resides in California, USA. O'Bannon grew up in a home influenced by the film industry. The son of a gaffer, he was surrounded by film from his birth. His father worked on various films through Warner Bros. golden age, and his mother was a professional dancer who performed with Fred Astaire. He started writing in high school, and wrote many spec scripts (works written "on speculation", without a verbal or written contract), and eventually submitted them to NBC's Amazing Stories and CBS's The Twilight Zone (1985). CBS bought one of them, and after a second script sale for The Twilight Zone, he was hired on as a staff writer. Description above from the Wikipedia article Rockne S. O'Bannon, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

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Biography from TMDB.

Born
January 12, 1955 (71)
From
Los Angeles, California, USA
Works as
Writer and producer, also director
Titles
19 on Motif · 25 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 39 days to Oct 28Down 48% in 30 days

What are Rockne S. O'Bannon's films like?

Across their 10 Motif titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Bonds and Society.

Genres

Crime4 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 54th percentile
: browse their Crime movies
Action2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 75th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Action movies

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

share of theme weight
Bonds
24%
Society
20%
Power
17%
Survival
12%
Ideas
11%
Morality
10%
Self
5%
Family bonds5 titles, browse their movies with this themePrejudice4 titles, browse their movies with this themeOppression2 titles, browse their movies with this themeSurvival2 titles, browse their movies with this themeIdentity2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 8 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Stylized: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their stylized movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

Grounded 4 · Stylized 4 · Heightened 0

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

Gentle 1 · Charged 6 · Intense 1

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

Steady 4 · Shifting 4 · Whiplash 0

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

Straight-faced 5 · Some laughs 3 · 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 6 · Relentless 0

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

Casual 2 · Engaged 5 · Full focus 1

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

A split, not a type: Easy watch 3 · Affecting 5 · Heavy 0

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

Resolved 7 · Open-ended 1 · Ambiguous 0

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Tense
10
Dread
3
Thrilling
3
Warm
3
Contemplative
3
Other
5

How their films linger

Hopeful6 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteThought-provoking4 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteBittersweet3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFun2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteRousing2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end · 2 with a twist

  • Happy5
  • Bittersweet5

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 Rockne S. O'Bannon's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 9 of their 19 Motif titles stream on a subscription or free service.

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Rockne S. O'Bannon'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

25 credits, 19 with a Motif page.

  • Evil(2019)

    Show 9 episodes · Executive Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 83rd percentile of all shows

  • Constantine(2014)

    Show 1 episode · Writer

    Midcredits score: 76th percentile of all shows

  • Defiance(2013)

    Show 12 episodes · Creator · Executive Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 49th percentile of all shows

  • Cult (not in the Motif catalog yet)(2013)

    Show 1 episode · Creator · Writer

  • Revolution(2012)

    Show 22 episodes · Executive Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 34th percentile of all shows

  • V(2009)

    Show 1 episode · Writer

    Midcredits score: 40th percentile of all shows

  • The Triangle(2005)

    Show 3 episodes · Executive Producer · Teleplay · Writer

    Midcredits score: 25th percentile of all shows

  • Farscape: The Peacekeeper Wars(2004)

    Show Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 91st percentile of all shows

  • Fatal Error (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1999)

    Teleplay

  • Farscape(1999)

    Show 88 episodes · Creator · Executive Producer · Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 92nd percentile of all shows

  • Creature (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1998)

    Show 2 episodes · Producer · Teleplay

  • Alien Nation: The Udara Legacy(1997)

    Characters

    Midcredits score: 53rd percentile of all films

  • Invasion (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1997)

    Show 2 episodes · Writer

  • Alien Nation: The Enemy Within(1996)

    Characters

    Midcredits score: 53rd percentile of all films

  • Alien Nation: Millennium (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1996)

    Characters

  • Alien Nation: Body and Soul(1995)

    Characters · Writer

    Midcredits score: 54th percentile of all films

  • Deadly Invasion: The Killer Bee Nightmare(1995)

    Director · Teleplay

    Midcredits score: 9th percentile of all films

  • Alien Nation: Dark Horizon(1994)

    Characters

    Midcredits score: 60th percentile of all films

  • SeaQuest 2032(1993)

    Show 1 episode · Creator · Story

    Midcredits score: 41st percentile of all shows

  • SeaQuest DSV(1993)

    Executive Producer · Story · Teleplay

    Midcredits score: 98th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)

  • Fear(1990)

    Director · Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 39th percentile of all films

  • Alien Nation(1989)

    Show Creator

    Midcredits score: 43rd percentile of all shows

  • Alien Nation(1988)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 51st percentile of all films

  • Amazing Stories(1985)

    Show 1 episode · Writer

    Midcredits score: 69th percentile of all shows

  • The Twilight Zone (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1985)

    Show 9 episodes · Story Editor · Teleplay · Writer

Career shape

A full career of 24 titles from 1985 to 2019.

Biggest box office

Alien Nation (1988)

$32M worldwide

Highest rated

Farscape: The Peacekeeper Wars (2004)

Midcredits 91st

Most popular right now

The Triangle (2005)

By role

only this rolewith another role
Directing2 of 24: 0 only directing, 2 with another roleWriting23 of 24: 12 only writing, 11 with another role · typical Midcredits score53rdProducing8 of 24: 0 only producing, 8 with another role · typical Midcredits score49thOther crew5 of 24: 1 only other crew, 4 with another role

24 titles, 11 with more than one role — writing and producing overlap on 8 of them.

By decade

1980s4 · crew1990s13 · crew2000s2 · crew2010s5 · 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 Motif, shown from 5 scored.

How do Rockne S. O'Bannon's films land?

Their typical Motif film has a Midcredits score in the 53rd percentile, the median of all 8; across their 8 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 49th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

49thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 8

Approval · how many liked their films

57thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 8

Reach · how many have seen their films

55thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 8

Midcredits score across 19 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up5
  • 50th to 74th6
  • 25th to 49th7
  • Below 25th1

Shape of the crowd

9 of their 19 titles are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved3
  • Crowd Pleaser9
  • Broadly Agreed2
  • Mixed5

Most divisive · director, writer

Deadly Invasion: The Killer Bee Nightmare (1995)

61st percentile spread · 56% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · writer, producer

Farscape (1999)

Midcredits 92nd · 88% liked

Reviewers score the dialogue 43/100 and the plot and story 42/100 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 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.

Who does Rockne S. O'Bannon work with?

People who share at least 2 of Rockne S. O'Bannon's Motif titles, grouped by what they did on them; Kenneth Johnson shares the most, 4.

Directors

Writers

Actors

Composers, cinematographers and editors

Producers