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Michael Varhol

Michael Varhol

Writer and producer

Michael Varhol is a screenwriter and film producer. He is most notable for his work on Pee-wee's Big Adventure and The Big Picture.

Biography from TMDB.

Works as
Writer and producer
Titles
3 on MovieCove · 4 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 37 days to Oct 26Up 32% in 30 days

What are Michael Varhol's films like?

Across a limited sample of 3 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Self and Bonds.

Themes

share of theme weight
Self
29%
Bonds
23%
Society
23%
Power
18%
Morality
7%
Community2 titles, browse their movies with this themeFriendship2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

Moods and endings

endings shown from 5 titles

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Absurd
3
Joyful
2
Warm
2
Contemplative
1
Thrilling
1
Other
1

How their films linger

Feel-good2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFun2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

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 Michael Varhol's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 1 of their 3 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service.

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Michael Varhol'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

4 credits, 3 with a MovieCove page.

  • The Big Picture(1989)

    Producer · Screenplay · Story

    Midcredits score: 49th percentile of all films

  • Pee-wee's Playhouse(1986)

    Show 11 episodes · Writer

    Midcredits score: 87th percentile of all shows

  • Pee-wee's Big Adventure(1985)

    Writer · as Photographer

    Midcredits score: 78th percentile of all films

  • The Last Word (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1979)

    Producer · Screenplay

Career shape

A full career of 4 titles from 1979 to 1989.

Biggest box office

Pee-wee's Big Adventure (1985)

$41M worldwide

Highest rated

Pee-wee's Playhouse (1986)

Midcredits 87th

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting1 of 4: 0 only acting, 1 with another roleWriting4 of 4: 1 only writing, 3 with another roleProducing2 of 4: 0 only producing, 2 with another role

4 titles, 3 with more than one role — writing and producing overlap on 2 of them.

By decade

1970s1 · crew1980s3 · 1 acting · 3 crew

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it.

Is Michael Varhol's work okay for kids?

Across a limited sample of up to 3 MovieCove titles with content scores.

Their medianMedian of all films
Sex & Nudity3 titlesmedian 17 · mildMedian of all films: 32

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

Who does Michael Varhol work with?

People who share at least 2 of Michael Varhol's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Richard Gilbert Abramson shares the most, 3.

Writers

Composers

Producers