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Herbert Ross

Herbert Ross

Director and producer, also actor · Died October 9, 2001, aged 74 · Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA

Herbert David Ross (May 13, 1927 - October 9, 2001) was an American actor, choreographer, director and producer who worked predominantly in the stage and film. Ross was born in Brooklyn, New York, the son of Martha Grundfast and Louis Chester Ross, a postal clerk. At the age of 9, his mother died and his father moved the family to Miami and opened a luncheonette. In 1942, Ross' stage debut came as "Third Witch" in a touring company of Macbeth. The next year brought his first Broadway performance credits with Something for the Boys. By 1950, he was a choreographer with the American Ballet Theatre and choreographed his first Broadway production, the Arthur Schwartz-Dorothy Fields musical adaptation of A Tree Grows in Brooklyn. Ross's first film assignment came as an uncredited choreographer on Carmen Jones (1954). In the UK, he choreographed The Young Ones (1961) and Summer Holiday (1963), both starring Cliff Richard. Later, he worked with Barbra Streisand as choreographer and director of musical numbers for Funny Girl (1968). His film directorial debut came with the musical version of Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1969), made by MGM-British, with Peter O'Toole and Petula Clark. He went on to direct films involving ballet, such as The Turning Point (1977), Nijinsky (1980) and Dancers (1987). Other movies of critical acclaim followed in the 1970s and 1980s such as Neil Simon's adaptations of his own plays and film adaptations of Broadway productions through his last project, Boys on the Side (1995).

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Biography from TMDB.

Born
May 13, 1927
Died
October 9, 2001 (aged 74)
From
Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA
Works as
Director and producer, also actor
Titles
29 on MovieCove · 35 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 26Down 32% in 30 days

What are Herbert Ross' films like?

Across their 26 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Bonds and Self.

Genres

Comedy14 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 63rd percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Comedy movies
Drama7 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 63rd percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Drama movies
Biography2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 52nd percentile
: browse their Biography 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
Bonds
44%
Self
27%
Morality
8%
Society
8%
Ideas
6%
Power
5%
Survival
2%
Romantic love9 titles, browse their movies with this themeFamily bonds9 titles, browse their movies with this themeFriendship5 titles, browse their movies with this themeIdentity4 titles, browse their movies with this themeSelf-worth4 titles, browse their movies with this themeAmbition4 titles, browse their movies with this themeArt3 titles, browse their movies with this themeMarriage2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 26 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Light: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their light movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

Light 17 · Serious 6 · Dark 3

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

A split, not a type: Grounded 15 · Stylized 9 · Heightened 2

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

A split, not a type: Gentle 13 · Charged 9 · Intense 4

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

A split, not a type: Steady 15 · Shifting 8 · Whiplash 3

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

A split, not a type: Straight-faced 7 · Some laughs 8 · Funny 11

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

Slow burn 12 · Even-paced 14 · Relentless 0

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

Casual 15 · Engaged 10 · Full focus 1

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

Resolved 22 · Open-ended 2 · Ambiguous 2

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Warm
14
Melancholic
12
Joyful
9
Tense
8
Romantic
7
Other
23

How their films linger

Feel-good14 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteBittersweet10 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHopeful10 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFun6 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteWistful5 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteThought-provoking3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end · 2 with a twist

  • Happy11
  • Bittersweet12
  • Tragic1
  • Ambiguous2

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 Herbert Ross' films?

As of October 24, 2026, 15 of their 29 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Tubi (7).

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Herbert Ross' 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

35 credits, 29 with a MovieCove page; 8 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.

  • Poster Boy(2004)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 38th percentile of all films

  • Boys on the Side(1995)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 65th percentile of all films

  • Undercover Blues(1993)

    Director · Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 48th percentile of all films

  • Soapdish(1991)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 66th percentile of all films

  • True Colors(1991)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 46th percentile of all films

  • My Blue Heaven(1990)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 50th percentile of all films

  • Steel Magnolias(1989)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 89th percentile of all films

  • Dancers(1987)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 17th percentile of all films

  • The Secret of My Success(1987)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 60th percentile of all films

  • Protocol(1984)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 25th percentile of all films

  • Footloose(1984)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 68th percentile of all films

  • Max Dugan Returns(1983)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 69th percentile of all films

  • I Ought to Be in Pictures(1982)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 49th percentile of all films

  • Pennies from Heaven(1981)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 63rd percentile of all films

  • Nijinsky(1980)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 56th percentile of all films

  • California Suite(1978)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 46th percentile of all films

  • The Goodbye Girl(1977)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 90th percentile of all films

  • The Turning Point(1977)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 72nd percentile of all films

  • The Amazing Miss Cummings: An Actress at Work and Play (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1977)

    Actor

  • The Seven-Per-Cent Solution(1976)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 67th percentile of all films

  • The Sunshine Boys(1975)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 80th percentile of all films

  • Funny Lady(1975)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 47th percentile of all films

  • The Last of Sheila(1973)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 88th percentile of all films

  • Play It Again, Sam(1972)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 95th percentile of all films

  • T.R. Baskin(1971)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 55th percentile of all films

  • The Owl and the Pussycat(1970)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 60th percentile of all films

  • Goodbye, Mr. Chips(1969)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 76th percentile of all films

  • Funny Girl(1968)

    Choreographer

    Midcredits score: 94th percentile of all films

  • This is Streisand (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1968)

    Actor

  • Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?(1966)

    Choreographer

    Midcredits score: 97th percentile of all films

  • Inside Daisy Clover(1965)

    Choreographer

    Midcredits score: 48th percentile of all films

  • The Fantasticks (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1964)

    Choreographer

  • The Bacchantes (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1961)

    Choreographer

  • Meet Me in St. Louis (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1959)

    Choreographer

  • Wonderful Town (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1958)

    Director

Career shape

A full career of 35 titles from 1958 to 2004.

Biggest box office

The Secret of My Success (1987)

$111M worldwide

Highest rated

Play It Again, Sam (1972)

Midcredits 95th

Most popular right now

The Secret of My Success (1987)

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting2 of 35: 2 only acting, 0 with another roleDirecting25 of 35: 14 only directing, 11 with another role · typical Midcredits score62ndProducing13 of 35: 2 only producing, 11 with another role · typical Midcredits score63rdOther crew6 of 35: 6 only other crew, 0 with another role

35 titles, 11 with more than one role — directing and producing overlap on 11 of them.

By decade

1950s2 · crew1960s7 · 1 acting · 6 crew1970s11 · 1 acting · 10 crew1980s9 · crew1990s5 · crew2000s1 · 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.

How do Herbert Ross' films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 63rd percentile, the median of all 29; across their 26 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 64th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

64thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 26

Approval · how many liked their films

61stpercentile
Typical film, the median of 26

Reach · how many have seen their films

81stpercentile
Typical film, the median of 26

Midcredits score across 29 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up8
  • 50th to 74th12
  • 25th to 49th8
  • Below 25th1

Shape of the crowd

16 of their 29 titles are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved5
  • Crowd Pleaser16
  • Broadly Agreed2
  • Mixed6

Most divisive · director

Dancers (1987)

73rd percentile spread · 43% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · director

Play It Again, Sam (1972)

Midcredits 95th · 85% liked

Reviewers score the atmosphere 65/100 and the pacing 47/100 in their films, across 25 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 Herbert Ross' work okay for kids?

Across up to 9 MovieCove titles with content scores, 2 of the 5 categories sit near the median of all films.

Their medianMedian of all filmsMiddle 80% of their titles
Violence & Gore4 titlesmedian 34 · mildMedian of all films: 44
Sex & Nudity9 titles28–45 · median 39 · moderatenear the median of all filmsMedian of all films: 32
Profanity7 titles44–71 · median 46 · moderatenear the median of all filmsMedian of all films: 36
Alcohol & Drugs4 titlesmedian 39 · moderateMedian of all films: 33
Frightening / Intense3 titlesmedian 26 · mildMedian 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 Herbert Ross work with?

People who share at least 2 of Herbert Ross' MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Neil Simon shares the most, 6.

Writers

Actors

Cinematographers and editors

Producers

Mixed roles