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Francis Lawrence

Francis Lawrence

Director and producer, also actor · Born March 26, 1971 (55) · Vienna, Austria

Grammy Award winner · Independent Spirit Award winner

Francis Lawrence (born March 26, 1971) is an American filmmaker and producer. After establishing himself as a director of music videos and commercials, Lawrence made his feature-length directorial debut with the superhero thriller Constantine (2005) and has since directed the post-apocalyptic horror film I Am Legend (2007), the romantic drama Water for Elephants (2011), four of the five films in The Hunger Games film series, and the spy thriller Red Sparrow (2018). Description above from the Wikipedia article Francis Lawrence, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

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Biography from TMDB.

Born
March 26, 1971 (55)
From
Vienna, Austria
Works as
Director and producer, also actor
Titles
16 on MovieCove · 31 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 26Up 8% in 30 days

What are Francis Lawrence's films like?

Across their 13 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Survival and Morality.

Genres

Action6 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 72nd percentile
: browse their Action movies
Drama2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 81st 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
Survival
25%
Morality
19%
Power
18%
Bonds
15%
Society
14%
Self
5%
Ideas
4%
Survival4 titles, browse their movies with this themeSacrifice4 titles, browse their movies with this themeGrief3 titles, browse their movies with this themeLoyalty3 titles, browse their movies with this themeOppression2 titles, browse their movies with this themeFreedom2 titles, browse their movies with this themeDeception2 titles, browse their movies with this themeFamily bonds2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 11 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Dark: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their dark movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

Light 2 · Serious 1 · Dark 8

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

Grounded 3 · Stylized 5 · Heightened 3

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

Gentle 2 · Charged 0 · Intense 9

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

Steady 2 · Shifting 7 · Whiplash 2

Straight-faced: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their straight-faced movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

Straight-faced 10 · Some laughs 1 · Funny 0

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

Slow burn 2 · Even-paced 7 · 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 3 · Engaged 5 · Full focus 3

Heavy: How much it costs you emotionally; whether you need recovery time. Browse their heavy movies.
Demand · Emotional cost
easyheavy

Easy watch 2 · Affecting 1 · Heavy 8

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

Resolved 6 · Open-ended 5 · Ambiguous 0

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Tense
11
Dread
5
Melancholic
6
Contemplative
4
Hopeful
4
Other
6

How their films linger

Thought-provoking9 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteBittersweet7 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHopeful4 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteUnsettling3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end · 5 with a twist

  • Happy1
  • Bittersweet6
  • Tragic1
  • Ambiguous5

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 Francis Lawrence's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 14 of their 16 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service.

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Francis Lawrence'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

31 credits, 16 with a MovieCove page; 11 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.

  • The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2026)

    Director · Producer

  • The Long Walk(2025)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 71st percentile of all films

  • Chief of War(2025)

    Show 9 episodes · Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 75th percentile of all shows

  • The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes(2023)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 72nd percentile of all films

  • Slumberland(2022)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 71st percentile of all films

  • The Serpent Queen(2022)

    Show 16 episodes · Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 82nd percentile of all shows

  • See(2019)

    Show 24 episodes · Director · Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 82nd percentile of all shows

  • Red Sparrow(2018)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 60th percentile of all films

  • The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 2(2015)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 71st percentile of all films

  • The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1(2014)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 70th percentile of all films

  • The Hunger Games: Catching Fire(2013)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 95th percentile of all films

  • Touch(2012)

    Show 26 episodes · Director · Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 59th percentile of all shows

  • Water for Elephants(2011)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 75th percentile of all films

  • P!NK: Greatest Hits... So Far!!! (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2010)

    Director

  • Kings(2009)

    Show 13 episodes · Director · Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 90th percentile of all shows

  • I Am Legend: Awakening - Story 2: Isolation (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2008)

    Thanks

  • I Am Legend(2007)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 87th percentile of all films

  • Natalie Imbruglia - Glorious: The Singles 97-07 (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2007)

    Director

  • Constantine(2005)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 82nd percentile of all films

  • Unscripted (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2005)

    Show 1 episode · as Francis Lawrence

  • Britney Spears: Greatest Hits - My Prerogative (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2004)

    Director

  • Janet Jackson: From Janet. To Damita Jo: The Videos (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2004)

    Director

  • Green Day: International Supervideos! (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2001)

    Director

  • Jennifer Lopez | Feelin' So Good (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2000)

    Director

  • Marching Out of Time (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1993)

    Assistant Director

  • Pump Up the Volume(1990)

    Second Assistant Camera

    Midcredits score: 88th percentile of all films

  • BioShock (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Director · Producer

  • Carry Me to My Grave (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Director · Producer

  • Constantine 2 (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Director

  • Steel (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Director

  • Untitled Sublime Biopic (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Executive Producer

Career shape

A full career of 31 titles, 25 of them dated from 1990 to 2025.

Biggest box office

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (2013)

$865M worldwide

Highest rated

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (2013)

Midcredits 95th

Most popular right now

The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1 (2014)

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting1 of 31: 1 only acting, 0 with another roleDirecting24 of 31: 15 only directing, 9 with another role · typical Midcredits score72ndProducing12 of 31: 3 only producing, 9 with another role · typical Midcredits score74thOther crew3 of 31: 3 only other crew, 0 with another role

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

By decade

1990s2 · crew2000s10 · 1 acting · 9 crew2010s8 · crew2020s5 · 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 awards from 3 major nominations, 2000–2026.

WinNomination
  1. 2026
    • Independent Spirit Award, won
  2. 2011
    • Grammy Award, won · Best Short Form Music Video
  3. 2000
    • Grammy Award, nominated · Best Short Form Music Video

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 Francis Lawrence's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 72nd percentile, the median of all 11; across their 11 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 75th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

75thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 11

Approval · how many liked their films

75thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 11

Reach · how many have seen their films

99thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 11

Midcredits score across 16 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up9
  • 50th to 74th7

Shape of the crowd

None of their 16 titles divides audiences: 14 are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved2
  • Crowd Pleaser14

Most loved · director

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (2013)

Midcredits 95th · 82% liked

Reviewers score the atmosphere 78/100 and the pacing 44/100 in their films, across 10 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 Francis Lawrence's work okay for kids?

Across up to 12 MovieCove titles with content scores, violence & gore and frightening / intense run heavier than most films.

Their medianMedian of all filmsMiddle 80% of their titles
Violence & Gore12 titles57–91 · median 68 · intenseheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 44
Sex & Nudity12 titles12–64 · median 25 · mildnear the median of all filmsMedian of all films: 32
Profanity12 titles10–77 · median 32 · mildnear the median of all filmsMedian of all films: 36
Alcohol & Drugs12 titles11–58 · median 33 · mildnear the median of all filmsMedian of all films: 33
Frightening / Intense11 titles50–88 · median 74 · intenseheavier 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 Francis Lawrence work with?

People who share at least 2 of Francis Lawrence's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Jo Willems shares the most, 6.

Writers

Actors

Composers, cinematographers and editors

Producers