New York City native Paul Sado first gained attention with a series of plays at ManhattanTheatre Source and several scripts for maverick director Abel Ferrara. He then directed Away From Here and wrote / co-produced The Cobbler directed by two time academy award winner Tom McCarthy and starring Adam Sandler, Dustin Hoffman, Steve Buscemi, Ellen Barkin. Paul continued to work with Sandler, writing and producing Sandy Wexler (also starring Kevin James, JenniferHudson, and Lamorne Morris) the Emmy nominated special %100 FRESH as well as producing The Do Over with Kathryn Hahn, all record breaking releases for Netflix. As consultant/rewriter/script-doctor, Sado has worked on Win Win (Fox Searchlight) starring Paul Giamatti, Bobby Cannavale and Amy Ryan as well as Too Cool To Be Forgotten for Lakeshore Entertainment among many others not to be named. He recently developed a live-action, CGI hybrid of Candy Land, a family-comedy based on the beloved board game produced by Sony and Hasbro. He wrote and serves as Executive Producer on the animated musical feature film Leo, currently in production at Netflix with Bill Burr as the voice of Leo, directed by Robert Smigel.
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Biography from IMDb.
- February 17, 1978 (48)
- Brooklyn, New York, USA
- Actor, writer and producer
- 12 on MovieCove · 17 credits in all
What are Paul Sado's films like?
Across their 9 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Bonds and Self.
Genres
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
What they feel like to watch
Ironic 0 · Wry 1 · Earnest 8
Light 6 · Serious 2 · Dark 1
Grounded 4 · Stylized 4 · Heightened 1
A split, not a type: Gentle 5 · Charged 3 · Intense 1
A split, not a type: Steady 4 · Shifting 3 · Whiplash 2
Straight-faced 1 · Some laughs 3 · Funny 5
A split, not a type: Slow burn 5 · Even-paced 4 · Relentless 0
Casual 7 · Engaged 2 · Full focus 0
Easy watch 5 · Affecting 3 · Heavy 1
Resolved 7 · Open-ended 2 · Ambiguous 0
Moods and endings
- Happy4
- Bittersweet3
- 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 Paul Sado's films?
As of October 24, 2026, 10 of their 12 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Netflix (7).
Subscription and free streaming for Paul Sado'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
17 credits, 12 with a MovieCove page.
Electra (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2025)
Leo(2023)
Midcredits score: 80th percentile of all films
Hubie Halloween(2020)
Midcredits score: 23rd percentile of all films
A Talent for Trouble(2018)
Midcredits score: 13th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)
Adam Sandler: 100% Fresh(2018)
Midcredits score: 92nd percentile of all films
Sandy Wexler(2017)
Midcredits score: 19th percentile of all films
Man Down(2015)
Midcredits score: 44th percentile of all films
The Do-Over(2016)
Midcredits score: 26th percentile of all films
The Ridiculous 6(2015)
Midcredits score: 13th percentile of all films
The Cobbler(2014)
Midcredits score: 30th percentile of all films
Descent (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2007)
Personal Sergeant(2004)
Midcredits score: 57th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)
The Undeserved (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2004)
Paper Soldiers(2002)
Midcredits score: 40th percentile of all films
Law & Order(1990)
Midcredits score: 79th percentile of all showsRats! (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)
Voodoo Doll (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)
Career shape
Star power in the 76th percentile of 239,109 people with a billed film role, over a full career of 16 titles, 14 of them dated from 1990 to 2025; peak year 2015.
Biggest box office
The Cobbler (2014)
Highest rated
Adam Sandler: 100% Fresh (2018)
Most popular right now
Leo (2023)
Film career
Peak 2015 · steadily prominent in film for years. Film roles by billing, audience size and rating; 25+ votes. A show carries a single first-air date, so shows are not on the curve.
- 2002Screen debut· Paper Soldiers
Billing
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. Billing is TMDB cast order for roles with 25+ votes, billed in the top 30.
How do Paul Sado's films land?
Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 30th percentile, the median of all 11; across their 9 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 39th percentile for acclaim.
- 75th and up3
- 50th to 74th1
- 25th to 49th4
- Below 25th4
Shape of the crowd
4 of their 12 titles are Mixed.
- Universally Loved1
- Divisive1
- Cult Classic2
- Crowd Pleaser2
- Broadly Agreed2
- Mixed4
Reviewers score the acting 67/100 in their films, across 8 reviewed titles; fans 77, detractors 43. The element that speaks to their work as an actor.
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 Paul Sado's work okay for kids?
Across up to 6 MovieCove titles with content scores, violence & gore and profanity run heavier than most films and frightening / intense lighter.
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 Paul Sado work with?
People who share at least 2 of Paul Sado's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Adam Sandler shares the most, 5.
Directors
- Steven BrillShared titles: Adam Sandler: 100% Fresh (2018), Sandy Wexler (2017), The Do-Over (2016)See all 3 shared titles with Steven Brill
Writers
- Adam SandlerShared titles: Leo (2023), Adam Sandler: 100% Fresh (2018), Sandy Wexler (2017), The Do-Over (2016), The Cobbler (2014)See all 5 shared titles with Adam Sandler
Actors
- Rob SchneiderShared titles: Leo (2023), Adam Sandler: 100% Fresh (2018), Sandy Wexler (2017)See all 3 shared titles with Rob Schneider
- Nick SwardsonShared titles: Sandy Wexler (2017), The Do-Over (2016)See all 2 shared titles with Nick Swardson
Composers, cinematographers and editors
- Tom CostainShared titles: Adam Sandler: 100% Fresh (2018), Sandy Wexler (2017), The Do-Over (2016)See all 3 shared titles with Tom Costain
- J.J. TitoneShared titles: Leo (2023), Adam Sandler: 100% Fresh (2018)See all 2 shared titles with J.J. Titone
- Dean SemlerShared titles: Sandy Wexler (2017), The Do-Over (2016)See all 2 shared titles with Dean Semler
- Rupert Gregson-WilliamsShared titles: Sandy Wexler (2017), The Do-Over (2016)See all 2 shared titles with Rupert Gregson-Williams
Producers
- Allen CovertShared titles: Leo (2023), Adam Sandler: 100% Fresh (2018), Sandy Wexler (2017), The Do-Over (2016)See all 4 shared titles with Allen Covert
- Barry BernardiShared titles: Leo (2023), Adam Sandler: 100% Fresh (2018), The Do-Over (2016)See all 3 shared titles with Barry Bernardi
- Dan BullaShared titles: Adam Sandler: 100% Fresh (2018), Sandy Wexler (2017), The Do-Over (2016)See all 3 shared titles with Dan Bulla
- Brian RobinsonShared titles: Leo (2023), Adam Sandler: 100% Fresh (2018)See all 2 shared titles with Brian Robinson
Mixed roles
- David DanielShared titles: A Talent for Trouble (2018), Paper Soldiers (2002)See all 2 shared titles with David Daniel
- Tim HerlihyShared titles: Sandy Wexler (2017), The Do-Over (2016)See all 2 shared titles with Tim Herlihy
