Dave Wilson

Director · Died June 30, 2002, aged 69 · Hoboken, New Jersey, USA

Dave Wilson was a director of movies and primarily of television, in particular directing Saturday Night Live from its inception until the late 90s when he retired, just a few years before his death. His son Tommy Wilson took over directing Saturday Night Live after his retirement.

What are Dave Wilson's films like?

Across their 6 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Society and Ideas.

Themes

share of theme weight

Society

53%

Ideas

21%

Bonds

11%

Self

11%

Morality

4%

Community4 Fame2

What they feel like to watch

their average across 6 films

ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category

Wry

Tone · Sincerity

ironicearnest

A split, not a type: Ironic 1 · Wry 1 · Earnest 4

Light

Tone · Weight

lightdark

Light 6 · Serious 0 · Dark 0

Stylized

Tone · Style

naturalisticheightened

Grounded 3 · Stylized 3 · Heightened 0

Charged

Feel · Intensity

gentleintense

A split, not a type: Gentle 4 · Charged 2 · Intense 0

Shifting

Feel · Swings

steadyswings

Steady 3 · Shifting 3 · Whiplash 0

Funny

Feel · Humor

noneconstant

Straight-faced 0 · Some laughs 2 · Funny 4

Even-paced

Demand · Pace

slowrelentless

Slow burn 2 · Even-paced 3 · Relentless 1

Casual

Demand · Attention

casualfull focus

Casual 6 · Engaged 0 · Full focus 0

Easy watch

Demand · Emotional cost

easyheavy

Easy watch 6 · Affecting 0 · Heavy 0

Resolved

Demand · Resolution

resolvedambiguous

Resolved 6 · Open-ended 0 · Ambiguous 0

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Joyful

5

Warm

4

Absurd

3

Hopeful

1

Melancholic

1

How their films linger

Fun4 Feel-good5

How their films end

Happy2
Bittersweet1
Ambiguous1
Cyclical1
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 Dave Wilson's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 1 of their 8 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service.

Subscription and free streaming for Dave Wilson'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

21 credits, 8 with a MovieCove page.

An SNL Valentine(2015)
Director
Midcredits score: 17th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)
The Women of SNL (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2010)
Director
SNL Presents: A Very Gilly Christmas(2009)
Director
Midcredits score: 57th percentile of all films
Saturday Night Live in the '90s: Pop Culture Nation(2007)
Director
Midcredits score: 78th percentile of all films
Saturday Night Live: The Best of Dan Aykroyd (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2005)
Director
Bad Boys of Saturday Night Live (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1998)
Director
Saturday Night Live: A Tribute to Chris Farley (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1998)
Director
Saturday Night Live: The Best of Phil Hartman (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1998)
Director
Quiz Show(1994)
as Director
Midcredits score: 95th percentile of all films
Saturday Night Live: Halloween Special (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1991)
Director
The Earth Day Special(1990)
Director
Midcredits score: 43rd percentile of all films
Saturday Night Live: 15th Anniversary (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1989)
Director
Steve Martin's Best Show Ever(1981)
Director
Midcredits score: 76th percentile of all films
Bob & Ray, Jane, Laraine & Gilda (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1979)
Director
The Paul Simon Special (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1977)
Director
Saturday Night Live(1975)
Show 333 episodes · Director · as Director Bee (uncredited) · as Self (uncredited)
Midcredits score: 71st percentile of all shows
Energy Crisis (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1974)
Director
Really, Raquel(1974)
Director
Midcredits score: 64th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)
The Trouble With People (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1972)
Director
Friars Club Roast of Don Rickles (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1970)
Director
Tony Awards (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1956)
Show 1 episode · Assistant Director

Career shape

A full career of 17 titles from 1956 to 2010.

By role

only this rolewith another role

Acting2 of 17Directing15 of 17Other crew1 of 17

By decade

1950s1 · crew1970s7 · 1 acting · 7 crew1980s2 · crew1990s5 · 1 acting · 4 crew2000s1 · crew2010s1 · crew

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it.

How do Dave Wilson's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 64^th percentile, the median of all 7; across their 6 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 64^th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

64^thpercentile

Typical film, the median of 6

Approval · how many liked their films

56^thpercentile

Typical film, the median of 6

Reach · how many have seen their films

31^stpercentile

Typical film, the median of 6

Midcredits score across 8 titles, by percentile

75^th and up3
50^th to 74^th3
25^th to 49^th1
Below 25^th1

Shape of the crowd

3 of their 8 titles are Mixed.

Universally Loved1
Divisive2
Cult Classic1
Crowd Pleaser1
Mixed3

Most divisive · director

The Earth Day Special (1990)

94^th percentile spread · 33% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · actor

Quiz Show (1994)

Midcredits 95^th · 84% liked

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.