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Chris Matheson

Chris Matheson

Writer, producer and director · Born February 25, 1959 (67) · Beverly Hills, California, USA

Chris Matheson (born December 11, 1960) is an American film director and screenwriter. Matheson is best known for his collaborations with fellow screenwriter Ed Solomon, together creating the Bill & Ted franchise, writing the three films Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure, Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey, and Bill & Ted Face the Music. Together they also wrote the films Mom and Dad Save the World and Imagine That.

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Biography from TMDB.

Born
February 25, 1959 (67)
From
Beverly Hills, California, USA
Works as
Writer, producer and director
Titles
11 on MovieCove
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 37 days to Oct 26Up 27% in 30 days

What are Chris Matheson's films like?

Across their 10 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Bonds and Self.

Genres

Comedy5 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 30th percentile
: browse their Comedy movies
Adventure4 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 49th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Adventure 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
Bonds
65%
Self
26%
Society
6%
Survival
4%
Family bonds4 titles, browse their movies with this themeRomantic love4 titles, browse their movies with this themeFriendship4 titles, browse their movies with this themeComing of age3 titles, browse their movies with this themePurpose2 titles, browse their movies with this themeLoyalty2 titles, browse their movies with this themeIdentity2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 10 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Light: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their light movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

Light 10 · Serious 0 · Dark 0

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

Grounded 1 · Stylized 6 · Heightened 3

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

Gentle 8 · Charged 2 · Intense 0

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

A split, not a type: Steady 6 · Shifting 3 · Whiplash 1

Funny: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their funny movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

Straight-faced 0 · Some laughs 1 · Funny 9

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 1

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 0 · Full focus 0

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

Resolved 10 · Open-ended 0 · Ambiguous 0

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Absurd
9
Joyful
7
Hopeful
3
Warm
2
Thrilling
2
Other
3

How their films linger

Feel-good9 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFun7 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHopeful4 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end

  • Happy9
  • Bittersweet1

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 Chris Matheson's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 9 of their 11 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service.

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Chris Matheson'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

11 credits, 11 with a MovieCove page.

  • Bill & Ted Face the Music(2020)

    Executive Producer · Screenplay · as Ugly Demon

    Midcredits score: 40th percentile of all films

  • Harrow(2018)

    Show 1 episode · as Whitman Goddard

    Midcredits score: 79th percentile of all shows

  • Rapture-Palooza(2013)

    Executive Producer · Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 20th percentile of all films

  • Imagine That(2009)

    Writer

    Midcredits score: 30th percentile of all films

  • Evil Alien Conquerors(2003)

    Director · Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 32nd percentile of all films

  • Stepsister from Planet Weird(2000)

    Writer

    Midcredits score: 34th percentile of all films

  • Mr. Wrong(1996)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 4th percentile of all films

  • A Goofy Movie(1995)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 82nd percentile of all films

  • Mom and Dad Save the World(1992)

    Writer

    Midcredits score: 26th percentile of all films

  • Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey(1991)

    Characters · Co-Producer · Screenplay · as "Ugly" Seance Member

    Midcredits score: 57th percentile of all films

  • Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure(1989)

    Writer · as Ugly Waiter

    Midcredits score: 80th percentile of all films

Career shape

A full career of 11 titles from 1989 to 2020.

Biggest box office

Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure (1989)

$41M worldwide

Highest rated

A Goofy Movie (1995)

Midcredits 82nd

Film career

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting4 of 11: 1 only acting, 3 with another roleDirecting1 of 11: 0 only directing, 1 with another roleWriting10 of 11: 5 only writing, 5 with another role · typical Midcredits score33rdProducing3 of 11: 0 only producing, 3 with another role

11 titles, 5 with more than one role — writing and acting overlap on 3 of them.

By decade

1980s1 · 1 acting · 1 crew1990s4 · 1 acting · 4 crew2000s3 · crew2010s2 · 1 acting · 1 crew2020s1 · 1 acting · 1 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 Chris Matheson's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 33rd percentile, the median of all 10; across their 10 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 32nd percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

32ndpercentile
Typical film, the median of 10

Approval · how many liked their films

36thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 10

Reach · how many have seen their films

90thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 10

Midcredits score across 11 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up3
  • 50th to 74th1
  • 25th to 49th5
  • Below 25th2

Shape of the crowd

6 of their 11 titles are Mixed.

  • Cult Classic1
  • Crowd Pleaser4
  • Mixed6

Most divisive · director, writer

Evil Alien Conquerors (2003)

88th percentile spread · 40% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · writer

A Goofy Movie (1995)

Midcredits 82nd · 69% liked

Reviewers score the dialogue 52/100 and the plot and story 38/100 in their films, across 10 reviewed titles. The element that speaks to their work as a writer.

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 Chris Matheson's work okay for kids?

Across up to 6 MovieCove titles with content scores, violence & gore and frightening / intense run lighter than most films.

Their medianMedian of all filmsMiddle 80% of their titles
Violence & Gore5 titles21–54 · median 25 · mildlighter than most filmsMedian of all films: 44
Sex & Nudity5 titles13–32 · median 25 · mildnear the median of all filmsMedian of all films: 32
Profanity6 titles15–65 · median 34 · mildnear the median of all filmsMedian of all films: 36
Alcohol & Drugs5 titles19–47 · median 26 · mildnear the median of all filmsMedian of all films: 33
Frightening / Intense5 titles15–43 · median 26 · mildlighter 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 Chris Matheson work with?

People who share at least 2 of Chris Matheson's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Ed Solomon shares the most, 6.

Writers

Actors

Composers

Producers