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Scott Z. Burns

Scott Z. Burns

Writer, producer and director · Born January 1, 1962 (64) · Golden Valley, Minnesota, USA

BAFTA Award nominee

Scott Z. Burns (born July 17, 1962) is an American filmmaker and playwright.

Biography from TMDB.

Born
January 1, 1962 (64)
From
Golden Valley, Minnesota, USA
Works as
Writer, producer and director
Titles
18 on MovieCove · 26 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 155 days to Oct 26Up 2% in 30 days

What are Scott Z. Burns' films like?

Across their 11 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Morality and Survival.

Genres

Documentary3 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 86th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Documentary movies
Biography2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 74th percentile
: browse their Biography movies
Drama2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 72nd percentile
: browse their Drama movies

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

share of theme weight
Morality
29%
Survival
20%
Power
16%
Ideas
15%
Society
10%
Self
7%
Bonds
3%
Justice5 titles, browse their movies with this themeSurvival3 titles, browse their movies with this themeDeception4 titles, browse their movies with this themeGreed3 titles, browse their movies with this themeHope2 titles, browse their movies with this themeMortality2 titles, browse their movies with this themeCorruption2 titles, browse their movies with this themeTruth2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 11 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Dark: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their dark movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

Light 0 · Serious 4 · Dark 7

Grounded: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their grounded movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

Grounded 8 · Stylized 2 · Heightened 1

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

Gentle 0 · Charged 2 · Intense 9

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

Steady 5 · Shifting 6 · Whiplash 0

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

Straight-faced 9 · Some laughs 2 · Funny 0

Even-paced: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their even-paced movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 4 · Even-paced 6 · Relentless 1

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

Casual 0 · Engaged 5 · Full focus 6

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

Easy watch 0 · Affecting 4 · Heavy 7

Open-ended: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their open-ended movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

A split, not a type: Resolved 5 · Open-ended 4 · Ambiguous 2

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Tense
9
Melancholic
6
Dread
3
Contemplative
4
Cold
2
Other
7

How their films linger

Thought-provoking9 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteInfuriating3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteUnsettling3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHopeful2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHaunting2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end · 2 with a twist

  • Bittersweet8
  • Tragic2
  • Other1

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 Scott Z. Burns' films?

As of October 24, 2026, 16 of their 18 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Pluto TV (4).

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Scott Z. Burns' 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

26 credits, 18 with a MovieCove page; 1 appearance as themselves is hidden until asked for.

  • Dune: Prophecy(2024)

    Show 14 episodes · Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 56th percentile of all shows

  • Extrapolations(2023)

    Show 8 episodes · Director · Creator · Executive Producer · Story · Teleplay · Writer

    Midcredits score: 19th percentile of all shows

  • The Laundromat(2019)

    Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 47th percentile of all films

  • Sea of Shadows(2019)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 87th percentile of all films

  • The Report(2019)

    Director · Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 88th percentile of all films

  • The Loudest Voice(2019)

    Show 1 episode · Director

    Midcredits score: 88th percentile of all shows

  • The Last Laugh(2019)

    Thanks

    Midcredits score: 26th percentile of all films

  • The View from Here (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2018)

    Show 5 episodes · Director · Creator · Executive Producer

  • The Mercy(2018)

    Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 39th percentile of all films

  • An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power(2017)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 68th percentile of all films

  • Approaching the Unknown(2016)

    Thanks

    Midcredits score: 9th percentile of all films

  • Last Days (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2014)

    Writer

  • Sex Scientists (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2013)

    Director

  • Side Effects(2013)

    Producer · Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 82nd percentile of all films

  • Contagion(2011)

    Screenplay · Writer

    Midcredits score: 74th percentile of all films

  • Notes on Lying (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2010)

    Writer

  • The Informant!(2009)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 59th percentile of all films

  • Food, Inc.(2008)

    Thanks

    Midcredits score: 97th percentile of all films

  • What We Take from Each Other (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2008)

    Director · Executive Producer · Writer

  • Don't I Know You? (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2008)

    Director · Executive Producer

  • Californication(2007)

    Show 1 episode · Director

    Midcredits score: 93rd percentile of all shows

  • The Bourne Ultimatum(2007)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 98th percentile of all films

  • Pu-239(2006)

    Director · Writer

    Midcredits score: 70th percentile of all films

  • An Inconvenient Truth(2006)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 86th percentile of all films

  • American Psycho (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Screenplay

  • Thumblite (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Show 1 episode · Creator · Executive Producer · Writer

Career shape

A full career of 26 titles, 24 of them dated from 2006 to 2024.

Biggest box office

The Bourne Ultimatum (2007)

$443M worldwide

Highest rated

The Bourne Ultimatum (2007)

Midcredits 98th

By role

only this rolewith another role
Directing9 of 26: 3 only directing, 6 with another role · typical Midcredits score88thWriting14 of 26: 6 only writing, 8 with another role · typical Midcredits score70thProducing13 of 26: 4 only producing, 9 with another role · typical Midcredits score68thOther crew6 of 26: 3 only other crew, 3 with another role

26 titles, 10 with more than one role — writing and producing overlap on 7 of them.

By decade

2000s8 · crew2010s14 · crew2020s2 · 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

Nominated for a BAFTA Award in 2008.

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 Scott Z. Burns' films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 72nd percentile, the median of all 14; across their 11 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 74th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

74thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 11

Approval · how many liked their films

72ndpercentile
Typical film, the median of 11

Reach · how many have seen their films

94thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 11

Midcredits score across 18 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up8
  • 50th to 74th5
  • 25th to 49th3
  • Below 25th2

Shape of the crowd

9 of their 18 titles are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved3
  • Cult Classic1
  • Crowd Pleaser9
  • Broadly Agreed2
  • Mixed3

Most divisive · producer

An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power (2017)

87th percentile spread · 22% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · writer

The Bourne Ultimatum (2007)

Midcredits 98th · 91% liked

Reviewers score the dialogue 59/100 and the plot and story 57/100 in their films, across 11 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.

Is Scott Z. Burns' work okay for kids?

Across up to 9 MovieCove titles with content scores, violence & gore, profanity and frightening / intense run heavier than most films and sex & nudity lighter.

Their medianMedian of all filmsMiddle 80% of their titles
Violence & Gore9 titles23–69 · median 55 · moderateheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 44
Sex & Nudity7 titles10–54 · median 16 · mildlighter than most filmsMedian of all films: 32
Profanity7 titles40–58 · median 49 · moderateheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 36
Alcohol & Drugs6 titles14–48 · median 34 · mildnear the median of all filmsMedian of all films: 33
Frightening / Intense6 titles32–69 · median 55 · moderateheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 39

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 Scott Z. Burns work with?

People who share at least 2 of Scott Z. Burns' MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Steven Soderbergh shares the most, 6.

Directors

Writers

Actors

Cinematographers and editors

Producers