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Cary Joji Fukunaga

Cary Joji Fukunaga

Director, producer, writer and cinematographer, also actor · Born July 10, 1977 (49) · Oakland, California, USA

Primetime Emmy winner · BAFTA Award nominee · 6 other major award bodies

Cary Joji Fukunaga (born July 10, 1977) is an American filmmaker. A director of TV and film, he first came to wide prominence by directing the first season of the HBO series True Detective (2014). He is known for directing critically acclaimed films such as the thriller Sin nombre (2009), the period drama Jane Eyre (2011), the war drama Beasts of No Nation (2015) and the 25th James Bond film, No Time to Die (2021). He also co-wrote the Stephen King adaptation It (2017). He won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series as the director and executive producer of True Detective. He also directed and executive produced the Netflix limited series Maniac (2018) and executive produced and directed several episodes of the Apple TV+ miniseries Masters of the Air (2024). Description above from the Wikipedia article Cary Joji Fukunaga, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

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Biography from TMDB.

Born
July 10, 1977 (49)
From
Oakland, California, USA
Works as
Director, producer, writer and cinematographer, also actor
Titles
16 on MovieCove · 26 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 1% in 30 days

What are Cary Joji Fukunaga's films like?

Across their 14 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Self and Bonds.

Themes

share of theme weight
Self
22%
Bonds
20%
Survival
18%
Society
18%
Morality
12%
Power
6%
Ideas
4%
Coming of age5 titles, browse their movies with this themeFamily bonds3 titles, browse their movies with this themeCommunity2 titles, browse their movies with this themeFriendship2 titles, browse their movies with this themePrejudice2 titles, browse their movies with this themeSurvival2 titles, browse their movies with this themePurpose2 titles, browse their movies with this themeRomantic love2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 12 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Dark: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their dark movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

Light 1 · Serious 2 · Dark 9

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

A split, not a type: Grounded 9 · Stylized 1 · 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 1 · Charged 5 · Intense 6

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

Steady 4 · Shifting 7 · Whiplash 1

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

Straight-faced 9 · Some laughs 3 · Funny 0

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

A split, not a type: Slow burn 7 · Even-paced 4 · Relentless 1

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

Casual 4 · Engaged 6 · Full focus 2

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

Easy watch 1 · Affecting 2 · Heavy 9

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

Resolved 8 · Open-ended 4 · Ambiguous 0

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Tense
10
Melancholic
10
Contemplative
6
Dread
3
Hopeful
6
Other
9

How their films linger

Bittersweet6 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteThought-provoking6 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHopeful5 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteDevastating3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteUnsettling3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHaunting2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end · 1 with a twist

  • Bittersweet8
  • Tragic2
  • Ambiguous4

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 Cary Joji Fukunaga's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 11 of their 16 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Tubi (3).

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Cary Joji Fukunaga'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

26 credits, 16 with a MovieCove page; 4 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.

  • In Between Storms (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2025)

    Executive Producer

  • Ricky(2025)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 64th percentile of all films

  • Omnivore(2024)

    Show 8 episodes · Other

    Midcredits score: 74th percentile of all shows

  • Masters of the Air(2024)

    Show 4 episodes · Director

    Midcredits score: 83rd percentile of all shows

  • No Time to Die(2021)

    Director · Screenplay · Story

    Midcredits score: 88th percentile of all films

  • Joe Bell(2020)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 53rd percentile of all films

  • Maniac(2018)

    Show 10 episodes · Director · Creator · Executive Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 76th percentile of all shows

  • The Alienist(2018)

    Show 18 episodes · Creator · Executive Producer · Teleplay

    Midcredits score: 84th percentile of all shows

  • It(2017)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 89th percentile of all films

  • Thumper(2017)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 40th percentile of all films

  • Little Boxes(2016)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 36th percentile of all films

  • Lovesong(2016)

    as Dean

    Midcredits score: 56th percentile of all films

  • Beasts of No Nation(2015)

    Director · Cinematographer · Producer · Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 97th percentile of all films

  • True Detective(2014)

    Show 30 episodes · Director · Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 98th percentile of all shows

  • Sleepwalking in the Rift (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2012)

    Director · Producer

  • Jane Eyre(2011)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 90th percentile of all films

  • On the Ice(2011)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 51st percentile of all films

  • Chinatown Film Project (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2009)

    Director

  • Sin Nombre(2009)

    Director · Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 96th percentile of all films

  • Sikumi (On the Ice) (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2008)

    Cinematographer

  • Two Men (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2005)

    Cinematographer

  • Victoria para Chino (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2004)

    Director · Executive Producer · Writer

  • Mating Call (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2004)

    Cinematographer

  • 77 Blackout (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Director · Other

  • Blood on Snow (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Director · Producer

  • Death of Two Sons (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Cinematographer

Career shape

A full career of 25 titles, 22 of them dated from 2004 to 2025.

Biggest box office

No Time to Die (2021)

$907M worldwide

Highest rated

Beasts of No Nation (2015)

Midcredits 97th

Most popular right now

No Time to Die (2021)

Film career

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting1 of 25: 1 only acting, 0 with another roleDirecting12 of 25: 3 only directing, 9 with another role · typical Midcredits score90thWriting9 of 25: 2 only writing, 7 with another role · typical Midcredits score88thProducing12 of 25: 5 only producing, 7 with another role · typical Midcredits score70thCinematography5 of 25: 4 only cinematography, 1 with another roleOther crew2 of 25: 0 only other crew, 2 with another role

25 titles, 10 with more than one role — directing and producing overlap on 6 of them.

By decade

2000s6 · crew2010s10 · 1 acting · 9 crew2020s6 · 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

a Primetime Emmy and 3 other major awards from 20 major nominations, 2005–2024.

WinNomination
  1. 2024
    • Primetime Emmy, nominated · Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series
  2. 2022
    • BAFTA Award, nominated · Outstanding British Film of the Year
  3. 2019
    • Directors Guild Award, nominated · Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Movies for Television and Limited Series
    • Writers Guild Award, nominated · Long Form Adapted
    • Producers Guild Award, nominated · Outstanding Producer of Limited Series Television
  4. 2018
    • Primetime Emmy, nominated · Outstanding Limited Series
  5. 2016
    • Independent Spirit Award, nominated · Best Cinematography
    • Independent Spirit Award, nominated · Best Director
    • Independent Spirit Award, nominated · Best Feature
  6. 2015
    • Venice award, won
    • Venice award, nominated ×2
    • Directors Guild Award, nominated · Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Dramatic Series
    • Producers Guild Award, nominated · Outstanding Producer of Episodic Television, Drama
  7. 2014
    • Primetime Emmy, won · Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series
    • Primetime Emmy, nominated · Outstanding Drama Series
  8. 2010
    • Independent Spirit Award, nominated · Best Director
Show 2 earlier years
  1. 2009
    • Sundance award, won · Dramatic
    • Sundance award, nominated · Dramatic
  2. 2005
    • Sundance award, won

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 Cary Joji Fukunaga's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 64th percentile, the median of all 11; across their 12 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 73rd percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

73rdpercentile
Typical film, the median of 12

Approval · how many liked their films

78thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 12

Reach · how many have seen their films

89thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 12

Midcredits score across 16 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up9
  • 50th to 74th5
  • 25th to 49th2

Shape of the crowd

7 of their 16 titles are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved3
  • Cult Classic1
  • Crowd Pleaser7
  • Broadly Agreed1
  • Mixed4

Most divisive · producer

Ricky (2025)

82nd percentile spread · 19% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · director, producer

True Detective (2014)

Midcredits 98th · 95% liked

Reviewers score the atmosphere 72/100 and the pacing 50/100 in their films, across 12 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 Cary Joji Fukunaga's work okay for kids?

Across up to 9 MovieCove titles with content scores, violence & gore, profanity, alcohol & drugs and frightening / intense run heavier than most films.

Their medianMedian of all filmsMiddle 80% of their titles
Violence & Gore7 titles38–93 · median 85 · severeheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 44
Sex & Nudity9 titles25–67 · median 34 · mildnear the median of all filmsMedian of all films: 32
Profanity8 titles35–76 · median 67 · intenseheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 36
Alcohol & Drugs8 titles30–78 · median 45 · moderateheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 33
Frightening / Intense7 titles44–92 · median 64 · 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 Cary Joji Fukunaga work with?

People who share at least 2 of Cary Joji Fukunaga's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Daniel Craig shares the most, 2.

Actors

Cinematographers

Producers