Destin Yori Daniel Cretton (born November 23, 1978) is an American filmmaker. He is best known for directing the drama films Short Term 12 (2013), The Glass Castle (2017), Just Mercy (2019) as well as the Marvel Studios films Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021), Spider-Man: Brand New Day (2026), and the television series Wonder Man (2026). Description above from the Wikipedia article Destin Daniel Cretton, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
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Biography from TMDB.
- November 23, 1978 (47)
- Haiku, Hawaii, USA
- Director, producer, writer and editor
- 11 on MovieCove · 26 credits in all
What are Destin Daniel Cretton's films like?
Across their 9 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Survival and Bonds.
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 0 · Earnest 8
Light 1 · Serious 1 · Dark 6
Grounded 5 · Stylized 2 · Heightened 1
Gentle 0 · Charged 2 · Intense 6
Steady 0 · Shifting 5 · Whiplash 3
Straight-faced 6 · Some laughs 2 · Funny 0
A split, not a type: Slow burn 4 · Even-paced 3 · Relentless 1
Casual 1 · Engaged 6 · Full focus 1
Easy watch 0 · Affecting 2 · Heavy 6
A split, not a type: Resolved 6 · Open-ended 1 · Ambiguous 1
Moods and endings
- Happy3
- Bittersweet5
- Ambiguous1
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 Destin Daniel Cretton's films?
As of October 24, 2026, 8 of their 11 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service.
Subscription and free streaming for Destin Daniel Cretton'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
26 credits, 11 with a MovieCove page; 4 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.
Midcredits score: 99th percentile of all films
Wonder Man(2026)
Midcredits score: 70th percentile of all shows
Lucky Lu(2025)
Midcredits score: 73rd percentile of all films
American Born Chinese(2023)
Midcredits score: 48th percentile of all shows
In the Garden of Tulips (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2023)
Closing Dynasty (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2022)
Same Old (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2022)
Tokyo Vice(2022)
Midcredits score: 93rd percentile of all shows
Midcredits score: 89th percentile of all films
Just Mercy(2019)
Midcredits score: 97th percentile of all films
The Glass Castle(2017)
Midcredits score: 81st percentile of all filmsLos (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2017)
The Shack(2017)
Midcredits score: 62nd percentile of all films
Switchfoot: Close to Our Hearts, The Bro-Am Documentary (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2014)
Short Term 12(2013)
Midcredits score: 98th percentile of all films
I Am Not a Hipster(2012)
Midcredits score: 61st percentile of all films
Short Term 12 (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2008)
Deacon's Mondays (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2007)
Drakmar: A Vassal's Journey (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2006)
Bartholomew's Song (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2006)
Longbranch: A Suburban Parable (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2002)
By the Time the Sun Is Hot (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)
Naruto (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)
Sea of Thieves (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)
Untitled Hawaii Five-0 Film (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)
Untitled Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings Sequel (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)
Career shape
A full career of 26 titles, 21 of them dated from 2002 to 2026.
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
1 major award from 3 major nominations, 2009–2024.
- Directors Guild Award, nominated · Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Children's Programs
- Sundance award, nominated · Best of Next!
- Sundance award, won
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 Destin Daniel Cretton's films land?
Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 85th percentile, the median of all 8; across their 8 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 80th percentile for acclaim.
- 75th and up6
- 50th to 74th4
- 25th to 49th1
Shape of the crowd
6 of their 11 titles are Crowd Pleasers.
- Universally Loved4
- Cult Classic1
- Crowd Pleaser6
Reviewers score the atmosphere 73/100 and the pacing 46/100 in their films, across 7 reviewed titles. The element that speaks to their work as a director.
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 Destin Daniel Cretton's work okay for kids?
Across up to 7 MovieCove titles with content scores, profanity and frightening / intense run heavier than most films and sex & nudity 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 Destin Daniel Cretton work with?
People who share at least 2 of Destin Daniel Cretton's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Joel P West shares the most, 5.
Writers
- Andrew LanhamShared titles: Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021), Just Mercy (2019), The Glass Castle (2017), The Shack (2017)See all 4 shared titles with Andrew Lanham
Actors
- Brie LarsonShared titles: Just Mercy (2019), The Glass Castle (2017), Short Term 12 (2013)See all 3 shared titles with Brie Larson
- Sadie SinkShared titles: Spider-Man: Brand New Day (2026), The Glass Castle (2017)See all 2 shared titles with Sadie Sink
- Fala ChenShared titles: Lucky Lu (2025), Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021)See all 2 shared titles with Fala Chen
- Michelle YeohShared titles: American Born Chinese (2023), Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021)See all 2 shared titles with Michelle Yeoh
Composers, cinematographers and editors
- Joel P WestShared titles: Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021), Just Mercy (2019), The Glass Castle (2017), Short Term 12 (2013), I Am Not a Hipster (2012)See all 5 shared titles with Joel P West
- Nat SandersShared titles: Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021), Just Mercy (2019), The Glass Castle (2017), Short Term 12 (2013)See all 4 shared titles with Nat Sanders
- Brett PawlakShared titles: Just Mercy (2019), The Glass Castle (2017), Short Term 12 (2013), I Am Not a Hipster (2012)See all 4 shared titles with Brett Pawlak
Producers
- Asher GoldsteinShared titles: Lucky Lu (2025), American Born Chinese (2023), Just Mercy (2019), Short Term 12 (2013), I Am Not a Hipster (2012)See all 5 shared titles with Asher Goldstein
- Ron NajorShared titles: Lucky Lu (2025), Short Term 12 (2013), I Am Not a Hipster (2012)See all 3 shared titles with Ron Najor
- Gil NetterShared titles: Just Mercy (2019), The Glass Castle (2017), The Shack (2017)See all 3 shared titles with Gil Netter
- Kevin FeigeShared titles: Spider-Man: Brand New Day (2026), Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021)See all 2 shared titles with Kevin Feige
