Jeffrey D. Nathanson (born October 12, 1965) is an American filmmaker. He is best known for writing two films of the Rush Hour series, as well as the Steven Spielberg films Catch Me If You Can and The Terminal. Description above from the Wikipedia article Jeff Nathanson, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
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Biography from TMDB.
- October 12, 1965 (61)
- Los Angeles, California, USA
- Writer and producer, also director
- 15 on MovieCove · 18 credits in all
Known for
What are Jeff Nathanson's films like?
Across their 13 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Bonds and Self.
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 1 · Wry 0 · Earnest 12
Light 11 · Serious 2 · Dark 0
A split, not a type: Grounded 5 · Stylized 4 · Heightened 4
Gentle 3 · Charged 8 · Intense 2
Steady 4 · Shifting 8 · Whiplash 1
A split, not a type: Straight-faced 2 · Some laughs 5 · Funny 6
Slow burn 3 · Even-paced 6 · Relentless 4
Casual 9 · Engaged 4 · Full focus 0
Easy watch 9 · Affecting 4 · Heavy 0
Resolved 12 · Open-ended 1 · Ambiguous 0
Moods and endings
- Happy8
- Bittersweet5
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 Jeff Nathanson's films?
As of October 24, 2026, 12 of their 15 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Disney+ (6).
Subscription and free streaming for Jeff Nathanson'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
18 credits, 15 with a MovieCove page; 3 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.
Snow White(2025)
Midcredits score: 1st percentile of all films
Mufasa: The Lion King(2024)
Midcredits score: 66th percentile of all films
Young Woman and the Sea(2024)
Midcredits score: 95th percentile of all films
The Lion King(2019)
Midcredits score: 69th percentile of all filmsCaptain Jokes Parrot's Disaster of the Caribbean (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2017)
Midcredits score: 58th percentile of all films
Tower Heist(2011)
Midcredits score: 46th percentile of all films
New York, I Love You(2008)
Midcredits score: 40th percentile of all films
Midcredits score: 46th percentile of all films
Rush Hour 3(2007)
Midcredits score: 53rd percentile of all films
The Last Shot(2004)
Midcredits score: 28th percentile of all films
The Terminal(2004)
Midcredits score: 91st percentile of all films
Catch Me If You Can(2002)
Midcredits score: 99th percentile of all films
Rush Hour 2(2001)
Midcredits score: 73rd percentile of all films
Speed 2: Cruise Control(1997)
Midcredits score: 2nd percentile of all films
Luis Miguel: El Concierto (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1995)
For Better or Worse(1995)
Midcredits score: 10th percentile of all filmsUntitled Pirates of the Caribbean Reboot (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)
Career shape
A full career of 18 titles, 17 of them dated from 1995 to 2025.
Biggest box office
The Lion King (2019)
Highest rated
Catch Me If You Can (2002)
Most popular right now
The Lion King (2019)
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 2003, Best Screenplay - Adapted.
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 Jeff Nathanson's films land?
Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 53rd percentile, the median of all 15; across their 13 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 54th percentile for acclaim.
- 75th and up3
- 50th to 74th5
- 25th to 49th4
- Below 25th3
Shape of the crowd
6 of their 15 titles are Crowd Pleasers.
- Universally Loved2
- Universally Panned2
- Crowd Pleaser6
- Broadly Agreed3
- Mixed2
Reviewers score the dialogue 47/100 and the plot and story 44/100 in their films, across 13 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 Jeff Nathanson's work okay for kids?
Across up to 11 MovieCove titles with content scores, every category sits near the median of all films.
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 Jeff Nathanson work with?
People who share at least 2 of Jeff Nathanson's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Brett Ratner shares the most, 4.
Directors
- Brett RatnerShared titles: Tower Heist (2011), New York, I Love You (2008), Rush Hour 3 (2007), Rush Hour 2 (2001)See all 4 shared titles with Brett Ratner
- Joachim RønningShared titles: Young Woman and the Sea (2024), Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales (2017)See all 2 shared titles with Joachim Rønning
- Steven SpielbergShared titles: The Terminal (2004), Catch Me If You Can (2002)See all 2 shared titles with Steven Spielberg
Actors
- John KaniShared titles: Mufasa: The Lion King (2024), The Lion King (2019)See all 2 shared titles with John Kani
- Stephen GrahamShared titles: Young Woman and the Sea (2024), Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales (2017)See all 2 shared titles with Stephen Graham
- Matthew BroderickShared titles: Tower Heist (2011), The Last Shot (2004)See all 2 shared titles with Matthew Broderick
- Chris TuckerShared titles: Rush Hour 3 (2007), Rush Hour 2 (2001)See all 2 shared titles with Chris Tucker
Composers, cinematographers and editors
- Mark HelfrichShared titles: Tower Heist (2011), Rush Hour 3 (2007), Rush Hour 2 (2001)See all 3 shared titles with Mark Helfrich
- Lalo SchifrinShared titles: Rush Hour 3 (2007), Rush Hour 2 (2001)See all 2 shared titles with Lalo Schifrin
- Janusz KaminskiShared titles: The Terminal (2004), Catch Me If You Can (2002)See all 2 shared titles with Janusz Kaminski
- John WilliamsShared titles: The Terminal (2004), Catch Me If You Can (2002)See all 2 shared titles with John Williams
Producers
- Jerry BruckheimerShared titles: Young Woman and the Sea (2024), Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales (2017)See all 2 shared titles with Jerry Bruckheimer
- Arthur M. SarkissianShared titles: Rush Hour 3 (2007), Rush Hour 2 (2001)See all 2 shared titles with Arthur M. Sarkissian
- Jay SternShared titles: Rush Hour 3 (2007), Rush Hour 2 (2001)See all 2 shared titles with Jay Stern
- Jonathan GlickmanShared titles: Rush Hour 3 (2007), Rush Hour 2 (2001)See all 2 shared titles with Jonathan Glickman
Mixed roles
- Yvan AttalShared titles: New York, I Love You (2008), Rush Hour 3 (2007)See all 2 shared titles with Yvan Attal
