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T Bone Burnett

T Bone Burnett

Composer, actor and producer, also director · Born January 14, 1948 (78) · St. Louis, Missouri, USA

Joseph Henry "T Bone" Burnett III (born January 14, 1948) is an American record producer, guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He was a guitarist in Bob Dylan's band during the 1970s. Burnett has won several Grammy Awards for his work on film soundtracks, namely O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000), Cold Mountain (2004), Walk the Line (2005), and Crazy Heart (2010). He won another Grammy for producing the album Raising Sand (2007), in which he united the contemporary bluegrass of Alison Krauss with the blues rock of Led Zeppelin lead vocalist Robert Plant. Burnett has been credited with early career mentorship of musical acts such as Counting Crows, Los Lobos, Sam Phillips, and Gillian Welch, and with revitalizing the careers of Gregg Allman and Roy Orbison. He produced for television programs including Nashville and True Detective. He has released several solo studio albums as a producer, including Tooth of Crime (2008), which he wrote for a revival of the namesake play by Sam Shepard. Description above from the Wikipedia article T Bone Burnett, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

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Biography from TMDB.

Born
January 14, 1948 (78)
From
St. Louis, Missouri, USA
Works as
Composer, actor and producer, also director
Titles
20 on MovieCove · 29 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Official site (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 155 days to Oct 26Down 40% in 30 days

What are T Bone Burnett's films like?

Across their 15 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Self and Society.

Genres

Documentary9 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 88th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Documentary movies
Drama3 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 62nd 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
Self
29%
Society
24%
Ideas
16%
Morality
14%
Bonds
11%
Power
6%
Art6 titles, browse their movies with this themeCommunity5 titles, browse their movies with this themeIdentity3 titles, browse their movies with this themeSelf-worth3 titles, browse their movies with this themeRedemption3 titles, browse their movies with this themeFamily bonds3 titles, browse their movies with this themePurpose2 titles, browse their movies with this themeLegacy3 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 15 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Light: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their light movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

Light 8 · Serious 6 · Dark 1

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

Grounded 11 · Stylized 3 · Heightened 1

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

A split, not a type: Gentle 7 · Charged 6 · Intense 2

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

Steady 10 · Shifting 3 · 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 4 · Funny 1

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

Slow burn 13 · Even-paced 2 · 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 10 · Engaged 5 · Full focus 0

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

Resolved 12 · Open-ended 3 · Ambiguous 0

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Melancholic
8
Warm
8
Contemplative
7
Joyful
5
Bittersweet
4
Other
9

How their films linger

Hopeful7 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFeel-good6 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteBittersweet5 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFun4 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteRousing3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteThought-provoking2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end

  • Happy6
  • Bittersweet8
  • Ambiguous1

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 T Bone Burnett's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 13 of their 20 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Tubi (4).

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for T Bone Burnett'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

29 credits, 20 with a MovieCove page; 17 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.

  • Ringo & Friends at the Ryman (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2025)

    Producer · as Self

  • Downtown Owl(2023)

    Composer · Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 48th percentile of all films

  • The Old Man(2022)

    Show 15 episodes · Composer

    Midcredits score: 71st percentile of all shows

  • Jerry Lee Lewis: Trouble in Mind(2022)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 56th percentile of all films

  • Top Gun: Maverick(2022)

    Music Consultant

    Midcredits score: 99th percentile of all films

  • American Epic (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2017)

    Show 3 episodes · Executive Producer

  • Roy Orbison: Black and White Night 30(2017)

    Director · as Self

    Midcredits score: 99th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)

  • The Way of Folk (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2016)

    Thanks · as Self

  • Roy Orbison: One of the Lonely Ones (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2015)

    Actor

  • Lost Songs: The Basement Tapes Continued(2014)

    Composer · as Self

    Midcredits score: 96th percentile of all films

  • True Detective(2014)

    Show 30 episodes · Composer

    Midcredits score: 98th percentile of all shows

  • Another Day, Another Time: Celebrating the Music of Inside Llewyn Davis(2013)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 97th percentile of all films

  • Inside Llewyn Davis(2013)

    Executive Music Producer · Songs

    Midcredits score: 93rd percentile of all films

  • A Place at the Table(2012)

    Composer · Compositor · Songs

    Midcredits score: 73rd percentile of all films

  • The Hunger Games(2012)

    Additional Music · Executive Music Producer · Songs

    Midcredits score: 90th percentile of all films

  • Crazy Heart(2009)

    Composer · Producer · Songs

    Midcredits score: 89th percentile of all films

  • Walk the Line(2005)

    Composer · Executive Music Producer

    Midcredits score: 97th percentile of all films

  • Don't Come Knocking(2005)

    Composer

    Midcredits score: 62nd percentile of all films

  • Cold Mountain(2003)

    Songs

    Midcredits score: 87th percentile of all films

  • Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood(2002)

    Composer

    Midcredits score: 49th percentile of all films

  • Bob (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2001)

    as Bob

  • Down from the Mountain(2000)

    Executive Producer · as Self

    Midcredits score: 88th percentile of all films

  • O Brother, Where Art Thou?(2000)

    Composer · Music Producer

    Midcredits score: 96th percentile of all films

  • The Larry Sanders Show(1992)

    Show 1 episode · as T Bone Burnett

    Midcredits score: 93rd percentile of all shows

  • The Tonight Show with Jay Leno (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1992)

    Show 1 episode · Actor

  • In 'N Out (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1984)

    Composer

  • Heaven's Gate(1980)

    as Heaven's Gate Band

    Midcredits score: 71st percentile of all films

  • Renaldo and Clara (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1978)

    as The Inner Voice

  • Grendel (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Songs · as The Shaper

Career shape

A full career of 29 titles, 28 of them dated from 1978 to 2025.

Biggest box office

Walk the Line (2005)

$187M worldwide

Highest rated

Roy Orbison and Friends: A Black and White Night (1988)

Midcredits 99th

Most popular right now

O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000)

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting7 of 29: 6 only acting, 1 with another roleDirecting1 of 29: 1 only directing, 0 with another roleProducing7 of 29: 5 only producing, 2 with another role · typical Midcredits score88thMusic12 of 29: 8 only music, 4 with another role · typical Midcredits score90thOther crew8 of 29: 4 only other crew, 4 with another role · typical Midcredits score90th

29 titles, 5 with more than one role — music and other crew overlap on 3 of them.

By decade

1970s1 · acting1980s2 · 1 acting · 1 crew1990s2 · acting2000s8 · 1 acting · 7 crew2010s10 · 1 acting · 9 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.

How do T Bone Burnett's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 89th percentile, the median of all 17; across their 15 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 86th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

86thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 15

Approval · how many liked their films

85thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 15

Reach · how many have seen their films

63rdpercentile
Typical film, the median of 15

Midcredits score across 20 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up13
  • 50th to 74th5
  • 25th to 49th2

Shape of the crowd

12 of their 20 titles are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved7
  • Crowd Pleaser12
  • Mixed1

Most divisive · producer, composer

Downtown Owl (2023)

75th percentile spread · 15% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · composer

True Detective (2014)

Midcredits 98th · 95% liked

Reviewers score the sound and music 73/100 in their films, across 11 reviewed titles; fans 86, detractors 50. The element that speaks to their work as a composer.

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 T Bone Burnett's work okay for kids?

Across a limited sample of up to 4 MovieCove titles with content scores.

Their medianMedian of all films
Violence & Gore3 titlesmedian 37 · moderateMedian of all films: 44
Sex & Nudity4 titlesmedian 26 · mildMedian of all films: 32
Profanity4 titlesmedian 56 · moderateMedian of all films: 36
Alcohol & Drugs3 titlesmedian 73 · intenseMedian of all films: 33
Frightening / Intense3 titlesmedian 36 · moderateMedian of all films: 39

Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted.

Who does T Bone Burnett work with?

People who share at least 2 of T Bone Burnett's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Ethan Coen shares the most, 4.

Directors

Actors

Editors

Producers

Mixed roles