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Ari Aster

Ari Aster

Producer, director and writer · Born July 15, 1986 (40) · New York City, New York, USA

Cannes award nominee · Independent Spirit Award nominee

Ari Aster (born July 15, 1986) is an American filmmaker. His films are noted for their unsettling combination of dark comedy, horror, and graphic violence. After garnering some recognition for writing and directing the short horror film The Strange Thing About the Johnsons (2011) as part of his studies at the AFI Conservatory, he became widely known for writing and directing the horror films Hereditary (2018) and Midsommar (2019), establishing himself in the genre of elevated horror. Aster co-founded the production company Square Peg with Danish producer Lars Knudsen in 2019. He pivoted away from horror by writing, directing, and producing the surrealist comedy-drama film Beau Is Afraid (2023) and the satirical neo-Western thriller film Eddington (2025). Both films received positive reviews but failed to recoup their budgets at the box office. Description above from the Wikipedia article Ari Aster, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

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Biography from TMDB.

Born
July 15, 1986 (40)
From
New York City, New York, USA
Works as
Producer, director and writer
Titles
15 on MovieCove · 34 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 26Down 32% in 30 days

What are Ari Aster's films like?

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

Genres

Comedy7 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 68th percentile
: browse their Comedy movies
Drama2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 87th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: 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
Self
22%
Survival
20%
Morality
17%
Society
14%
Bonds
13%
Power
9%
Ideas
6%
Family bonds4 titles, browse their movies with this themeGrief3 titles, browse their movies with this themeIdentity3 titles, browse their movies with this themeSurvival3 titles, browse their movies with this themeGuilt2 titles, browse their movies with this themeObsession2 titles, browse their movies with this themeCommunity2 titles, browse their movies with this themeBetrayal2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 11 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Wry: How sincerely it treats its story and characters, from ironic to earnest. Browse their wry movies.
Tone · Sincerity
ironicearnest

A split, not a type: Ironic 4 · Wry 2 · Earnest 4

Serious: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their serious movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

A split, not a type: Light 3 · Serious 3 · Dark 5

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

Grounded 1 · Stylized 5 · Heightened 5

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

Gentle 1 · Charged 3 · Intense 7

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

A split, not a type: Steady 1 · Shifting 4 · Whiplash 6

Some laughs: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their some laughs movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

Straight-faced 2 · Some laughs 7 · Funny 2

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

Slow burn 1 · Even-paced 8 · Relentless 2

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

Casual 2 · Engaged 5 · Full focus 4

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 2 · Affecting 3 · Heavy 6

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

Resolved 1 · Open-ended 3 · Ambiguous 7

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Tense
8
Absurd
9
Dread
6
Melancholic
4
Contemplative
2
Other
4

How their films linger

Thought-provoking7 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteUnsettling6 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHaunting5 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end · 2 with a twist

  • Bittersweet1
  • Tragic2
  • Ambiguous7
  • Cyclical1

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 Ari Aster's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 13 of their 15 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Tubi (7).

Subscription and free streaming for Ari Aster'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

34 credits, 15 with a MovieCove page; 10 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.

  • Primetime(2026)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 81st percentile of all films

  • The Drama(2026)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 81st percentile of all films

  • Bugonia(2025)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 91st percentile of all films

  • Eddington(2025)

    Director · Producer · Writer · as Radio Journalist (voice) (uncredited)

    Midcredits score: 65th percentile of all films

  • Death of a Unicorn(2025)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 34th percentile of all films

  • Babygirl(2024)

    Thanks

    Midcredits score: 32nd percentile of all films

  • Rumours(2024)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 13th percentile of all films

  • Janet Planet(2023)

    Thanks

    Midcredits score: 57th percentile of all films

  • Sasquatch Sunset(2024)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 28th percentile of all films

  • Dream Scenario(2023)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 74th percentile of all films

  • The Bones (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2023)

    Executive Producer

  • Beau Is Afraid(2023)

    Director · Original Film Writer · Producer · Writer · as A Neighbor of Beau's (uncredited)

    Midcredits score: 68th percentile of all films

  • El Padre Bueno (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2023)

    Executive Producer

  • Crows Are White (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2022)

    Executive Producer

  • After Yang(2021)

    Thanks

    Midcredits score: 65th percentile of all films

  • The Most Beautiful Boy in the World(2021)

    Thanks

    Midcredits score: 76th percentile of all films

  • Midsommar(2019)

    Director · Writer · as Podcast on Mark's Phone (voice) (uncredited)

    Midcredits score: 83rd percentile of all films

  • Hereditary(2018)

    Director · Writer · as Archer Gallery Representative (voice) (uncredited)

    Midcredits score: 90th percentile of all films

  • Basically (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2014)

    Director · Producer · Writer

  • Munchausen (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2013)

    Director · Writer

  • The Strange Thing About the Johnsons (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2011)

    Director · Writer

  • Antarctica (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Producer

  • Bushido (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Producer

  • Death Stranding (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Producer

  • Enemies (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Producer

  • Gummy (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Producer

  • Hansel & Gretel (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Executive Producer

  • Jonty (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Producer

  • Scapegoat (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Director · Producer · Writer

  • Schiller Park (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Producer

  • The Looming (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Producer

  • Untitled A24 Horror Film (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Executive Producer

  • Untitled Sixth Ari Aster Feature Film (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Director · Producer · Writer

  • Why Don't You Love Me? (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Producer

Career shape

A full career of 34 titles, 21 of them dated from 2011 to 2026.

Biggest box office

The Drama (2026)

$135M worldwide

Highest rated

Bugonia (2025)

Midcredits 91st

Most popular right now

Primetime (2026)

Film career

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting4 of 34: 0 only acting, 4 with another roleDirecting9 of 34: 0 only directing, 9 with another roleWriting9 of 34: 0 only writing, 9 with another roleProducing26 of 34: 21 only producing, 5 with another role · typical Midcredits score68thOther crew4 of 34: 4 only other crew, 0 with another role

34 titles, 9 with more than one role — producing and directing overlap on 5 of them.

By decade

2010s5 · 2 acting · 5 crew2020s16 · 2 acting · 16 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

2 major nominations and no wins, 2019–2025.

  1. 2025
    • Cannes award, nominated
  2. 2019
    • Independent Spirit Award, nominated · Best First Feature

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 Ari Aster's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 68th percentile, the median of all 15; across their 11 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 73rd percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

73rdpercentile
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

98thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 11

Midcredits score across 15 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up6
  • 50th to 74th5
  • 25th to 49th3
  • Below 25th1

Shape of the crowd

10 of their 15 titles are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Crowd Pleaser10
  • Broadly Agreed1
  • Mixed4

Most divisive · producer

Sasquatch Sunset (2024)

53rd percentile spread · 31% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · producer

Bugonia (2025)

Midcredits 91st · 80% liked

Reviewers score the atmosphere 77/100 and the pacing 43/100 in their films, across 11 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 Ari Aster's work okay for kids?

Across up to 11 MovieCove titles with content scores, violence & gore, sex & nudity, profanity, alcohol & drugs and frightening / intense run heavier than most films.

Their medianMedian of all filmsMiddle 80% of their titles
Violence & Gore11 titles59–92 · median 83 · severeheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 44
Sex & Nudity11 titles37–78 · median 56 · moderateheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 32
Profanity11 titles27–83 · median 72 · intenseheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 36
Alcohol & Drugs10 titles31–74 · median 48 · moderateheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 33
Frightening / Intense11 titles53–92 · median 81 · severeheavier 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 Ari Aster work with?

People who share at least 2 of Ari Aster's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Lars Knudsen shares the most, 11.

Directors

Actors

Composers, cinematographers and editors

Producers