Lee Smith, ACE (born June 10, 1960), is an Australian film editor who has worked in the film industry since the 1980s. He began his film career as a sound editor before establishing himself as an editor. His breakthrough came when he began collaborating with director Peter Weir. Smith is best known for his work on several of Christopher Nolan's films, including Batman Begins (2005), The Prestige (2006), The Dark Knight (2008), Inception (2010), The Dark Knight Rises (2012), Interstellar (2014) and Dunkirk (2017), for which he won the Academy Award for Best Film Editing. Description above from the Wikipedia article Lee Smith (film editor), licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
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Biography from TMDB.
- June 10, 1960 (66)
- Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
- Editor, also actor
- 38 on MovieCove · 49 credits in all
What are Lee Smith's films like?
Across their 32 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Morality and Self.
Genres
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
What they feel like to watch
Ironic 2 · Wry 5 · Earnest 24
A split, not a type: Light 7 · Serious 5 · Dark 20
Grounded 10 · Stylized 14 · Heightened 8
Gentle 3 · Charged 10 · Intense 19
Steady 7 · Shifting 20 · Whiplash 5
Straight-faced 24 · Some laughs 6 · Funny 2
Slow burn 8 · Even-paced 18 · Relentless 6
Casual 6 · Engaged 20 · Full focus 6
A split, not a type: Easy watch 6 · Affecting 12 · Heavy 14
Resolved 20 · Open-ended 10 · Ambiguous 2
Moods and endings
- Happy6
- Bittersweet20
- Ambiguous6
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 Lee Smith's films?
As of October 24, 2026, 30 of their 38 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Tubi (9).
- Dead Calm (1989) · sound designer · free
- Black and White (2002) · editor · free
- Ender's Game (2013) · editor · free
- Dead End Drive-In (1986) · editor · free
- RoboCop 2 (1990) · editor · free
- Communion (1989) · editor · free
- Joey (1997) · editor · free
- Turtle Beach (1992) · editor · free
- Howling III (1987) · editor · free
- Shout! TV, show their 3 titles on Shout! TV
- Howdy, show their 2 titles on Howdy
- Cinemax, show their title on Cinemax
- Cineverse, show their title on Cineverse
- Great American Pure Flix, show their title on Great American Pure Flix
- Midnight Pulp, show their title on Midnight Pulp
- MovieSphere+, show their title on MovieSphere+
- Screambox, show their title on Screambox
Subscription and free streaming for Lee Smith'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
49 credits, 38 with a MovieCove page; 3 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.
The Beatles: George (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2028)
The Beatles: John (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2028)
The Beatles: Paul (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2028)
The Beatles: Ringo (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2028)
The Unholy Trinity(2024)
Midcredits score: 26th percentile of all films
Better Man(2024)
Midcredits score: 94th percentile of all films
Argylle(2024)
Midcredits score: 26th percentile of all films
Empire of Light(2022)
Midcredits score: 64th percentile of all films
The 355(2022)
Midcredits score: 34th percentile of all films
1917(2019)
Midcredits score: 99th percentile of all films
X-Men: Dark Phoenix(2019)
Midcredits score: 22nd percentile of all films
Dunkirk(2017)
Midcredits score: 97th percentile of all films
Spectre(2015)
Midcredits score: 71st percentile of all films
Interstellar(2014)
Midcredits score: 99th percentile of all films
Ender's Game(2013)
Midcredits score: 63rd percentile of all films
Elysium(2013)
Midcredits score: 64th percentile of all films
The Dark Knight Rises(2012)
Midcredits score: 99th percentile of all films
X-Men: First Class(2011)
Midcredits score: 95th percentile of all films
The Way Back(2010)
Midcredits score: 88th percentile of all films
Inception(2010)
Midcredits score: 99th percentile of all films
The Dark Knight(2008)
Midcredits score: 99th percentile of all films
The Prestige(2006)
Midcredits score: 99th percentile of all films
Batman Begins(2005)
Midcredits score: 99th percentile of all films
Midcredits score: 94th percentile of all films
The Rage in Placid Lake(2003)
Midcredits score: 75th percentile of all films
Black and White(2002)
Midcredits score: 66th percentile of all films
Buffalo Soldiers(2001)
Midcredits score: 69th percentile of all films
Risk (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2001)
Holy Smoke(1999)
Midcredits score: 40th percentile of all films
Two Hands(1999)
Midcredits score: 83rd percentile of all films
The Truman Show(1998)
Midcredits score: 99th percentile of all films
Joey(1997)
Midcredits score: 18th percentile of all films
Lilian's Story (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1996)
Little Women(1994)
Midcredits score: 93rd percentile of all films
Fearless(1993)
Midcredits score: 82nd percentile of all films
The Piano(1993)
Midcredits score: 93rd percentile of all films
Lorenzo's Oil(1992)
Midcredits score: 89th percentile of all films
Blinky Bill (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1992)
Turtle Beach(1992)
Midcredits score: 9th percentile of all films
RoboCop 2(1990)
Midcredits score: 35th percentile of all films
Communion(1989)
Midcredits score: 27th percentile of all films
Bangkok Hilton (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1989)
Dead Calm(1989)
Midcredits score: 73rd percentile of all films
Howling III(1987)
Midcredits score: 3rd percentile of all films
Dead End Drive-In(1986)
Midcredits score: 41st percentile of all films
Burke & Wills (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1985)
Crosstalk (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1982)
The Chain Reaction(1980)
Midcredits score: 25th percentile of all filmsSirius (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)
Career shape
A full career of 49 titles, 44 of them dated from 1980 to 2025.
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
an Oscar and 3 other major awards from 11 major nominations, 1994–2020.
- Critics Choice Award, won · Best Editing
- Oscar, won · Best Achievement in Film Editing
- BAFTA Award, nominated · Best Editing
+1 other major body · 1 win
- Critics Choice Award, won · Best Editing
- Critics Choice Award, nominated · Best Editing
- BAFTA Award, nominated · Best Editing
+1 other major body · 1 win
- Critics Choice Award, won · Best Editing
- Oscar, nominated · Best Achievement in Film Editing
- BAFTA Award, nominated · Best Editing
- Oscar, nominated · Best Film Editing
- BAFTA Award, nominated · Best Sound
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 Lee Smith's films land?
Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 74th percentile, the median of all 38; across their 32 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 73rd percentile for acclaim.
- 75th and up19
- 50th to 74th7
- 25th to 49th8
- Below 25th4
Shape of the crowd
14 of their 38 titles are Universally Loved.
- Universally Loved14
- Crowd Pleaser12
- Broadly Agreed3
- Mixed9
Reviewers score the pacing 51/100 in their films, across 30 reviewed titles; fans 60, detractors 29. The element that speaks to their work as an editor.
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 Lee Smith's work okay for kids?
Across up to 24 MovieCove titles with content scores, violence & gore, profanity and frightening / intense run heavier than most films.
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 Lee Smith work with?
People who share at least 2 of Lee Smith's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Christopher Nolan shares the most, 8.
Directors
- Christopher NolanShared titles: Dunkirk (2017), Inside 'Interstellar' (2015), Interstellar (2014), The Dark Knight Rises (2012), Gotham Uncovered: Creation of a Scene (2008), The Dark Knight (2008), The Prestige (2006), Batman Begins (2005)See all 8 shared titles with Christopher Nolan
- Peter WeirShared titles: The Way Back (2010), Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003), The Truman Show (1998), Fearless (1993)See all 4 shared titles with Peter Weir
- Simon KinbergShared titles: The 355 (2022), X-Men: Dark Phoenix (2019), Elysium (2013), X-Men: First Class (2011)See all 4 shared titles with Simon Kinberg
- Matthew VaughnShared titles: Argylle (2024), X-Men: First Class (2011)See all 2 shared titles with Matthew Vaughn
Writers
- Jonathan NolanShared titles: Interstellar (2014), The Dark Knight Rises (2012), The Dark Knight (2008), The Prestige (2006)See all 4 shared titles with Jonathan Nolan
- Bob KaneShared titles: The Dark Knight Rises (2012), The Dark Knight (2008), Batman Begins (2005)See all 3 shared titles with Bob Kane
- David S. GoyerShared titles: The Dark Knight Rises (2012), The Dark Knight (2008), Batman Begins (2005)See all 3 shared titles with David S. Goyer
Actors
- Michael CaineShared titles: Interstellar (2014), The Dark Knight Rises (2012), The Dark Knight (2008), The Prestige (2006), Batman Begins (2005)See all 5 shared titles with Michael Caine
- Christian BaleShared titles: The Dark Knight Rises (2012), Gotham Uncovered: Creation of a Scene (2008), The Dark Knight (2008), The Prestige (2006), Batman Begins (2005)See all 5 shared titles with Christian Bale
- Jessica ChastainShared titles: The 355 (2022), X-Men: Dark Phoenix (2019), Inside 'Interstellar' (2015), Interstellar (2014)See all 4 shared titles with Jessica Chastain
- Cillian MurphyShared titles: Dunkirk (2017), The Dark Knight (2008), Batman Begins (2005)See all 3 shared titles with Cillian Murphy
Composers, cinematographers and editors
- Wally PfisterShared titles: The Dark Knight Rises (2012), Gotham Uncovered: Creation of a Scene (2008), The Dark Knight (2008), The Prestige (2006), Batman Begins (2005)See all 5 shared titles with Wally Pfister
- William M. AndersonShared titles: The Truman Show (1998), Fearless (1993), Turtle Beach (1992), RoboCop 2 (1990)See all 4 shared titles with William M. Anderson
- Russell BoydShared titles: The Way Back (2010), Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003), Turtle Beach (1992)See all 3 shared titles with Russell Boyd
- Cezary SkubiszewskiShared titles: The Rage in Placid Lake (2003), Black and White (2002), Two Hands (1999)See all 3 shared titles with Cezary Skubiszewski
Producers
- Emma ThomasShared titles: Dunkirk (2017), Inside 'Interstellar' (2015), Interstellar (2014), The Dark Knight Rises (2012), The Dark Knight (2008), The Prestige (2006), Batman Begins (2005)See all 7 shared titles with Emma Thomas
- Jordan GoldbergShared titles: Inside 'Interstellar' (2015), Interstellar (2014), The Dark Knight Rises (2012), Gotham Uncovered: Creation of a Scene (2008), The Dark Knight (2008), The Prestige (2006)See all 6 shared titles with Jordan Goldberg
- Charles RovenShared titles: The Dark Knight Rises (2012), Gotham Uncovered: Creation of a Scene (2008), The Dark Knight (2008), Batman Begins (2005)See all 4 shared titles with Charles Roven
- Thomas TullShared titles: Interstellar (2014), The Dark Knight Rises (2012), The Dark Knight (2008)See all 3 shared titles with Thomas Tull
Mixed roles
- Carl JordanShared titles: Inside 'Interstellar' (2015), Gotham Uncovered: Creation of a Scene (2008)See all 2 shared titles with Carl Jordan
- Jason HillhouseShared titles: Inside 'Interstellar' (2015), Gotham Uncovered: Creation of a Scene (2008)See all 2 shared titles with Jason Hillhouse
- Kip ThorneShared titles: Inside 'Interstellar' (2015), Interstellar (2014)See all 2 shared titles with Kip Thorne
- Lynda ObstShared titles: Inside 'Interstellar' (2015), Interstellar (2014)See all 2 shared titles with Lynda Obst
