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Paul W.S. Anderson

Paul W.S. Anderson

Producer, director and writer, also actor · Born March 4, 1965 (61) · Newcastle-upon-Tyne, England, UK

Paul William Scott Anderson (born 4 March 1965), also known as Paul WS Anderson or Paul Anderson, is an English film director who regularly works in science fiction movies and video game adaptations.

Biography from TMDB.

Born
March 4, 1965 (61)
From
Newcastle-upon-Tyne, England, UK
Works as
Producer, director and writer, also actor
Titles
26 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 12% in 30 days

What are Paul W.S. Anderson's films like?

Across their 25 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Survival and Morality.

Genres

Action21 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 30th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Action movies
Drama2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 17th percentile
: 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
45%
Morality
15%
Self
12%
Power
12%
Bonds
10%
Society
5%
Ideas
2%
Survival16 titles, browse their movies with this themeIdentity5 titles, browse their movies with this themeFreedom4 titles, browse their movies with this themeSacrifice4 titles, browse their movies with this themeBetrayal4 titles, browse their movies with this themeViolence4 titles, browse their movies with this themePower3 titles, browse their movies with this themeFamily bonds2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 25 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Dark: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their dark movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

Light 3 · Serious 4 · Dark 18

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

Grounded 2 · Stylized 12 · Heightened 11

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

Gentle 1 · Charged 1 · Intense 23

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

Steady 6 · Shifting 12 · Whiplash 7

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

Straight-faced 20 · Some laughs 5 · Funny 0

Relentless: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their relentless movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 2 · Even-paced 7 · Relentless 16

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

Casual 7 · Engaged 16 · Full focus 2

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 11 · Affecting 8 · Heavy 6

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

Resolved 20 · Open-ended 4 · Ambiguous 1

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Tense
21
Thrilling
19
Dread
13
Melancholic
6
Joyful
2
Other
11

How their films linger

Fun12 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteRousing11 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteUnsettling6 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteBittersweet7 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHopeful4 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHaunting3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end · 13 with a twist

  • Happy1
  • Bittersweet15
  • Tragic2
  • Ambiguous7

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 Paul W.S. Anderson's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 24 of their 26 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Tubi (6).

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Paul W.S. Anderson'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, 26 with a MovieCove page; 15 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.

  • Protector(2025)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 29th percentile of all films

  • In the Lost Lands(2025)

    Director · Producer · Screenstory

    Midcredits score: 10th percentile of all films

  • Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City(2021)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 14th percentile of all films

  • Here Are the Young Men(2020)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 12th percentile of all films

  • Monster Hunter(2020)

    Director · Producer · Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 16th percentile of all films

  • Action Women (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2020)

    Actor

  • Origin (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2018)

    Show 2 episodes · Director

  • Death Race 4: Beyond Anarchy(2018)

    Executive Producer · Story

    Midcredits score: 20th percentile of all films

  • Retaliation Mode: Making 'Resident Evil: The Final Chapter' (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2017)

    Producer · Writer · as Self

  • Resident Evil: The Final Chapter(2016)

    Director · Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 26th percentile of all films

  • Pompeii(2014)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 22nd percentile of all films

  • Death Race 3: Inferno(2013)

    Characters · Producer · Story

    Midcredits score: 24th percentile of all films

  • Resident Evil: Retribution(2012)

    Director · Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 24th percentile of all films

  • The Three Musketeers(2011)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 30th percentile of all films

  • Face Off(2011)

    Show 1 episode · as Guest Judge

    Midcredits score: 88th percentile of all shows

  • Death Race 2(2010)

    Characters · Producer · Story

    Midcredits score: 25th percentile of all films

  • Resident Evil: Afterlife(2010)

    Director · Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 33rd percentile of all films

  • Pandorum(2009)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 66th percentile of all films

  • Death Race(2008)

    Director · Producer · Screenplay · Screenstory

    Midcredits score: 53rd percentile of all films

  • Resident Evil: Extinction(2007)

    Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 46th percentile of all films

  • DOA: Dead or Alive(2006)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 14th percentile of all films

  • The Dark(2005)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 21st percentile of all films

  • Resident Evil: Apocalypse(2004)

    Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 45th percentile of all films

  • Alien vs. Predator(2004)

    Director · Screenstory · Writer

    Midcredits score: 31st percentile of all films

  • Resident Evil(2002)

    Director · Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 64th percentile of all films

  • The Sight (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2000)

    Director · Executive Producer · Writer

  • Soldier(1998)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 47th percentile of all films

  • Event Horizon(1997)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 67th percentile of all films

  • Mortal Kombat(1995)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 42nd percentile of all films

  • Shopping(1994)

    Director · Writer

    Midcredits score: 32nd percentile of all films

  • The House of the Dead (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Director · Producer · Writer

Career shape

A full career of 31 titles, 30 of them dated from 1994 to 2026.

Biggest box office

Resident Evil: The Final Chapter (2016)

$312M worldwide

Highest rated

Corman's World: Exploits of a Hollywood Rebel (2011)

Midcredits 93rd

Most popular right now

Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City (2021)

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting2 of 31: 2 only acting, 0 with another roleDirecting17 of 31: 4 only directing, 13 with another role · typical Midcredits score32ndWriting17 of 31: 0 only writing, 17 with another role · typical Midcredits score29thProducing23 of 31: 6 only producing, 17 with another role · typical Midcredits score25th

31 titles, 19 with more than one role — producing and directing overlap on 11 of them.

By decade

1990s4 · crew2000s9 · crew2010s11 · 1 acting · 10 crew2020s6 · 1 acting · 5 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.

How do Paul W.S. Anderson's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 29th percentile, the median of all 25; across their 25 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 29th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

29thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 25

Approval · how many liked their films

27thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 25

Reach · how many have seen their films

94thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 25

Midcredits score across 26 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up1
  • 50th to 74th4
  • 25th to 49th11
  • Below 25th10

Shape of the crowd

19 of their 26 titles are Mixed.

  • Crowd Pleaser6
  • Broadly Agreed1
  • Mixed19

Most divisive · producer

Here Are the Young Men (2020)

65th percentile spread · 40% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · director

Event Horizon (1997)

Midcredits 67th · 62% liked

Reviewers score the atmosphere 57/100 and the pacing 50/100 in their films, across 25 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 Paul W.S. Anderson's work okay for kids?

Across up to 22 MovieCove titles with content scores, violence & gore, profanity and frightening / intense run heavier than most films.

Their medianMedian of all filmsMiddle 80% of their titles
Violence & Gore20 titles58–92 · median 87 · severeheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 44
Sex & Nudity22 titles14–53 · median 29 · mildnear the median of all filmsMedian of all films: 32
Profanity20 titles30–84 · median 48 · moderateheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 36
Alcohol & Drugs20 titles7–42 · median 28 · mildnear the median of all filmsMedian of all films: 33
Frightening / Intense20 titles53–84 · median 66 · 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 Paul W.S. Anderson work with?

People who share at least 2 of Paul W.S. Anderson's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Jeremy Bolt shares the most, 21.

Directors

Writers

Actors

Composers, cinematographers and editors

Producers

  • Jeremy Bolt21 titles    See newest 12 of 21 shared titles with Jeremy Bolt
  • Robert Kulzer13 titles    See newest 12 of 13 shared titles with Robert Kulzer
  • Martin Moszkowicz11 titles    See all 11 shared titles with Martin Moszkowicz
  • Victor Hadida6 titles    See all 6 shared titles with Victor Hadida

Mixed roles