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Derik Murray

Derik Murray

Producer and director

Primetime Emmy nominee

Derik Murray, the founder and creative force behind Network Entertainment, first found his way to film through another artistic medium: photography. As a highly sought-after advertising photographer and television commercial director, Derik built a reputation early in his career for delivering award-winning, captivating work. He parlayed those skills for visual storytelling and launched a boutique publishing and packaging studio focused on global icons, and produced exclusively large-format pictorial books. His roster of titles - distributed globally - included Muhammad Ali: In Perspective, Arnold Palmer: A Personal Journey, Joe Montana, Wayne Gretzky, and several books on the Hockey Hall of Fame and its roster of legendary players. These publishing projects inspired and motivated the creation and production of Derik's first television production that he produced and directed, transforming his book Hockey Hall of Fame Legends into a documentary series. The production was a historic success in Canada, earning Derik the moniker the 'Ken Burns of Canada,' alongside The Hockey News declaring him as one of the game's 'Top 100 People of Power and Influence.' Broadcasts on TSN and ESPN, a radio series and an exhibit at the Hockey Hall of Fame would follow. From there, Derik established Network Entertainment and turned his focus and vision exclusively to premium documentary film and television production. With multiple series and films under his belt, Derik focused his attention on establishing Network as a creator of superior quality global content. The first stake in the ground was Facing Ali, a feature documentary on Muhammad Ali. The film was financed by Lionsgate Entertainment and was shortlisted for an Academy Award in 2010. Leveraging the success of Facing Ali on the global stage, Derik architected a robust slate of premium documentary content, including the award-winning I AM series of feature documentaries, currently at 14 films and counting. Derik's ever-growing body of work boasts collaborations with revered pop culture icons, including legendary fashion designer John Varvatos and punk pioneer Iggy Pop on the four-part PUNK series, and Executive Producer and host Robert Downey Jr. on the eight-part The Age of A.I. series. Derik recently produced a feature documentary film on Sidney Poitier - in partnership with Oprah Winfrey and directed by Reginald Hudlin, for Apple+; and Women Who Rock, a follow-up to the successful PUNK series, executive produced with John Varvatos and Jessica Hopper for EPIX. Additional high-profile feature documentaries and documentary series currently being produced include a feature documentary on Sly Stone, of Sly and the Family Stone - directed by Academy Award-winner and four-time Grammy and Sundance Film Festival Award-winner Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson and independently financed by MRC Non-Fiction; a 10-part series Legends of Hockey: Greatness Calling, in partnership with the Hockey Hall of Fame, for TSN; and an entertaining and provocative new feature documentary exploring what it meant to be part of the Brat Pack - then and now, directed and executive produced by Andrew McCarthy for NEON. Derik's work has been recognized by leading awards shows including the Oscars, the Emmys, and the Realscreen Awards, his films have screened at the most prestigious film festivals including TIFF, Tribeca and SXSW, and his projects generate high-profile broadcast media attention from Good Morning America to The Today Show, to articles in The New York Times, Vanity Fair, Forbes, Washington Post, and Rolling Stone, and numerous People magazine covers.

Read more

Biography from IMDb.

Works as
Producer and director
Titles
31 on MovieCove · 33 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 22% in 30 days

What are Derik Murray's films like?

Across their 31 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Society and Self.

Themes

share of theme weight
Society
38%
Self
31%
Survival
9%
Ideas
9%
Morality
7%
Bonds
5%
Power
2%
Legacy15 titles, browse their movies with this themeIdentity12 titles, browse their movies with this themeFame14 titles, browse their movies with this themeAmbition6 titles, browse their movies with this themeArt5 titles, browse their movies with this themeCommunity4 titles, browse their movies with this themeFamily bonds4 titles, browse their movies with this themePurpose3 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 28 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Serious: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their serious movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

A split, not a type: Light 14 · Serious 10 · Dark 4

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

Grounded 27 · Stylized 1 · Heightened 0

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

Gentle 12 · Charged 14 · Intense 2

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

Steady 23 · Shifting 4 · Whiplash 1

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

Straight-faced 22 · Some laughs 4 · Funny 2

Slow burn: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their slow burn movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 19 · Even-paced 9 · 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 18 · Engaged 10 · Full focus 0

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 15 · Affecting 9 · Heavy 4

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

Resolved 26 · Open-ended 2 · Ambiguous 0

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Contemplative
18
Melancholic
14
Warm
14
Hopeful
12
Thrilling
3
Other
15

How their films linger

Bittersweet15 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteRousing9 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHopeful10 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteThought-provoking9 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteWistful9 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFeel-good3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end · 1 with a twist

  • Happy4
  • Bittersweet18
  • Tragic3
  • Ambiguous5
  • 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 Derik Murray's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 28 of their 31 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Tubi (21).

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Derik Murray'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

33 credits, 31 with a MovieCove page.

  • Sly Lives! (aka the Burden of Black Genius)(2025)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 93rd percentile of all films

  • Downey Wrote That(2025)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 90th percentile of all films

  • I Am Joe Frazier(2025)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 86th percentile of all films

  • I Am Luke Perry(2025)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 79th percentile of all films

  • I Am Raquel Welch(2025)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 81st percentile of all films

  • Brats(2024)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 58th percentile of all films

  • Sidney(2022)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 94th percentile of all films

  • Women Who Rock(2022)

    Show 4 episodes · Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 59th percentile of all shows

  • Anne Murray: Full Circle(2021)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 97th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)

  • I Am Alfred Hitchcock(2021)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 92nd percentile of all films

  • I Am Burt Reynolds(2020)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 88th percentile of all films

  • I Am Jackie O(2020)

    Executive Producer · Producer

    Midcredits score: 82nd percentile of all films

  • The Age of A.I.(2019)

    Show 8 episodes · Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 83rd percentile of all shows

  • I Am Patrick Swayze(2019)

    Art Direction · Producer

    Midcredits score: 95th percentile of all films

  • Biography: Comedy Icons (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2019)

    Show 1 episode · Creator · Producer

  • I Am Richard Pryor(2019)

    Art Direction · Executive Producer · Producer

    Midcredits score: 69th percentile of all films

  • Punk(2019)

    Show 4 episodes · Producer

    Midcredits score: 90th percentile of all shows

  • Biography: Chris Farley - Anything for a Laugh(2019)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 97th percentile of all films

  • I Am MLK Jr.(2018)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 87th percentile of all films

  • I Am Paul Walker(2018)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 95th percentile of all films

  • I Am Heath Ledger(2017)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 93rd percentile of all films

  • I Am Sam Kinison(2017)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 81st percentile of all films

  • I Am JFK Jr.(2016)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 84th percentile of all films

  • Johnny Cash: American Rebel(2015)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 96th percentile of all films

  • I Am Chris Farley(2015)

    Director · Art Direction · Executive Producer · Producer

    Midcredits score: 84th percentile of all films

  • I Am Dale Earnhardt(2015)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 95th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)

  • I Am Evel Knievel(2014)

    Director · Executive Producer · Producer

    Midcredits score: 62nd percentile of all films

  • I Am Steve McQueen(2014)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 76th percentile of all films

  • The Good Son: The Life of Ray Boom Boom Mancini(2013)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 91st percentile of all films

  • I Am Bruce Lee(2012)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 89th percentile of all films

  • The Tortured(2010)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 19th percentile of all films

  • Facing Ali(2009)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 96th percentile of all films

  • Jimi (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Producer

Career shape

A full career of 19 titles, 18 of them dated from 2009 to 2025.

Biggest box office

I Am Heath Ledger (2017)

$479K worldwide

Highest rated

Facing Ali (2009)

Midcredits 96th

Most popular right now

Sidney (2022)

By role

only this rolewith another role
Directing5 of 19: 2 only directing, 3 with another role · typical Midcredits score84thProducing17 of 19: 11 only producing, 6 with another role · typical Midcredits score88thOther crew4 of 19: 0 only other crew, 4 with another role

19 titles, 6 with more than one role — producing and directing overlap on 3 of them.

By decade

2000s1 · crew2010s10 · crew2020s7 · 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

Nominated for a Primetime Emmy in 2025, Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Special.

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 Derik Murray's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 89th percentile, the median of all 28; across their 28 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 87th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

87thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 28

Approval · how many liked their films

89thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 28

Reach · how many have seen their films

62ndpercentile
Typical film, the median of 28

Midcredits score across 31 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up26
  • 50th to 74th4
  • Below 25th1

Shape of the crowd

17 of their 31 titles are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved11
  • Crowd Pleaser17
  • Mixed3

Most divisive · producer

I Am Dale Earnhardt (2015)

78th percentile spread · 13% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · producer

Biography: Chris Farley - Anything for a Laugh (2019)

Midcredits 97th · 88% liked

Reviewers score the atmosphere 61/100 and the pacing 48/100 in their films, across 16 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.

Who does Derik Murray work with?

People who share at least 2 of Derik Murray's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Paul Gertz shares the most, 27.

Directors

Writers

Actors

Cinematographers and editors

Producers

  • Paul Gertz27 titles    See newest 12 of 27 shared titles with Paul Gertz
  • Kent Wingerak24 titles    See newest 12 of 24 shared titles with Kent Wingerak
  • Gemma Strongman20 titles    See newest 12 of 20 shared titles with Gemma Strongman
  • Bianca Cervantes17 titles    See newest 12 of 17 shared titles with Bianca Cervantes

Mixed roles