Skip to content
MovieCove
Henry Louis Gates Jr.

Henry Louis Gates Jr.

Producer, writer and actor · Born September 16, 1950 (76) · Keyser, West Virginia, USA

Primetime Emmy nominee

Henry Louis "Skip" Gates, Jr. is an American historian, literary critic, filmmaker and public intellectual who currently serves as the Alphonse Fletcher University Professor and Director of the Hutchins Center for African and African American Research at Harvard University.

Biography from TMDB.

Born
September 16, 1950 (76)
From
Keyser, West Virginia, USA
Works as
Producer, writer and actor
Titles
13 on MovieCove · 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 157 days to Oct 28Down 60% in 30 days

What are Henry Louis Gates Jr.'s films like?

Across their 14 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Society and Power.

Themes

share of theme weight
Society
38%
Power
18%
Self
15%
Morality
15%
Ideas
12%
Bonds
2%
Community6 titles, browse their movies with this themeJustice6 titles, browse their movies with this themeIdentity4 titles, browse their movies with this themeLegacy5 titles, browse their movies with this themeOppression3 titles, browse their movies with this themeTruth3 titles, browse their movies with this themePrejudice4 titles, browse their movies with this themeFreedom3 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 7 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Grounded: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their grounded movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

Grounded 5 · Stylized 2 · Heightened 0

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

Gentle 3 · Charged 3 · Intense 1

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

Steady 6 · Shifting 1 · Whiplash 0

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

Straight-faced 7 · Some laughs 0 · Funny 0

Slow burn: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their slow burn movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 6 · Even-paced 1 · 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 1 · Engaged 5 · Full focus 1

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

A split, not a type: Easy watch 3 · Affecting 1 · Heavy 3

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

Resolved 5 · Open-ended 1 · Ambiguous 1

Roles they play

1 analyzed role

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Contemplative
12
Hopeful
8
Tense
5
Warm
3
Joyful
3
Other
6

How their films linger

Thought-provoking10 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHopeful7 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteRousing4 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteInfuriating3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFeel-good2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end

  • Happy2
  • Bittersweet9
  • Ambiguous3

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 Henry Louis Gates Jr.'s films?

As of October 24, 2026, 12 of their 13 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service.

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Henry Louis Gates Jr.'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

25 credits, 13 with a MovieCove page; 22 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.

  • Black and Jewish America: An Interwoven History(2026)

    Show 4 episodes · Executive Producer · Writer · as Self - Host

    Midcredits score: 13th percentile of all shows

  • Great Migrations: A People on the Move (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2025)

    Show 4 episodes · Executive Producer · as Self - Host

  • Gospel(2024)

    Show 4 episodes · Executive Producer · Writer · as Self

    Midcredits score: 33rd percentile of all shows (provisional, few ratings)

  • Making Black America (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2022)

    Show 4 episodes · Executive Producer · Writer · Actor

  • Frederick Douglass: In Five Speeches(2022)

    Executive Producer · as Self

    Midcredits score: 82nd percentile of all films

  • Civil War (or, Who Do We Think We Are)(2021)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 73rd percentile of all films

  • The Black Church: This Is Our Story, This Is Our Song (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2021)

    Show 2 episodes · Executive Producer · as Self - Host

  • Black Art: In the Absence of Light(2021)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 78th percentile of all films

  • Watchmen(2019)

    Show 2 episodes · as Skip Gates

    Midcredits score: 86th percentile of all shows

  • Who Killed Malcolm X?(2019)

    Show 6 episodes · Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 71st percentile of all shows

  • Reconstruction: America after The Civil War(2019)

    Show 4 episodes · Creator · Executive Producer · Writer · as Self - Host

    Midcredits score: 82nd percentile of all shows

  • Reconstruction: America After the Civil War (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2019)

    Executive Producer · Writer · as Self

  • Africa's Great Civilizations(2017)

    Show 6 episodes · Producer · Writer · as Self - Presenter

    Midcredits score: 49th percentile of all shows

  • Black America Since MLK: And Still I Rise(2016)

    Show 4 episodes · Producer · Writer · as Self - Presenter

    Midcredits score: 51st percentile of all shows

  • Black America since MLK: And still I rise (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2016)

    Actor

  • The African Americans: Many Rivers to Cross with Henry Louis Gates, Jr. (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2013)

    Show 6 episodes · Creator · as Self

  • Finding Your Roots(2012)

    Show 126 episodes · Executive Producer · Writer · as Self - Host

    Midcredits score: 91st percentile of all shows

  • Faces of America (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2010)

    Show 4 episodes · Actor

  • Looking for Lincoln(2009)

    Executive Producer · Writer · as Self - Host

    Midcredits score: 33rd percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)

  • The Colbert Report (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2005)

    Show 1 episode · Actor

  • America Beyond the Color Line (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2004)

    Show 4 episodes · Writer · as Self - Host

  • Let the Church Say, Amen (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2003)

    Executive Producer

  • Wonders of the African World (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1999)

    Show 6 episodes · Writer · as Host

  • Leaving Cleaver (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1999)

    Writer · as Self

  • The Simpsons(1989)

    Show 1 episode · as Henry Louis Gates, Jr. (voice)

    Midcredits score: 96th percentile of all shows

Career shape

A full career of 25 titles from 1989 to 2026.

Biggest box office

13th (2016)

$566 worldwide

Highest rated

13th (2016)

Midcredits 99th

Most popular right now

Finding Your Roots (2012)

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting8 of 25: 5 only acting, 3 with another roleWriting10 of 25: 4 only writing, 6 with another role · typical Midcredits score49thProducing14 of 25: 8 only producing, 6 with another role · typical Midcredits score73rdOther crew2 of 25: 0 only other crew, 2 with another role

25 titles, 8 with more than one role — producing and writing overlap on 5 of them.

By decade

1980s1 · acting1990s2 · 1 acting · 2 crew2000s4 · 1 acting · 3 crew2010s10 · 4 acting · 7 crew2020s8 · 1 acting · 8 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

4 major nominations and no wins, 2022–2026.

  1. 2026
    • Primetime Emmy, nominated · Outstanding Hosted Nonfiction Series or Special
  2. 2025
    • Primetime Emmy, nominated · Outstanding Hosted Nonfiction Series or Special
  3. 2024
    • Primetime Emmy, nominated · Outstanding Hosted Nonfiction Series or Special
  4. 2022
    • Primetime Emmy, nominated · Exceptional Merit in Documentary Filmmaking

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 Henry Louis Gates Jr.'s films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 76th percentile, the median of all 4; across their 7 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 80th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

80thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 7

Approval · how many liked their films

66thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 7

Reach · how many have seen their films

42ndpercentile
Typical film, the median of 7

Midcredits score across 13 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up6
  • 50th to 74th3
  • 25th to 49th3
  • Below 25th1

Shape of the crowd

4 of their 13 titles are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved1
  • Divisive3
  • Cult Classic3
  • Crowd Pleaser4
  • Mixed2

Most divisive · actor, writer, producer

Black and Jewish America: An Interwoven History (2026)

97th percentile spread · 52% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · actor, writer, producer

Finding Your Roots (2012)

Midcredits 91st · 87% liked

Reviewers score the dialogue 58/100 and the plot and story 63/100 in their films, across 4 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 Henry Louis Gates Jr. work with?

People who share at least 2 of Henry Louis Gates Jr.'s MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Dyllan McGee shares the most, 7.

Directors

Actors

Cinematographers and editors

Producers