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Espen Sandberg

Espen Sandberg

Director and producer · Born June 17, 1971 (55) · Sandefjord, Norway

Espen Sandberg is a Norwegian film director and advertising producer, well known to work with his childhood friend Joachim Rønning on several projects such as Bandidas (2006), Max Manus (2008), Kon-Tiki (2012) and Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales (2017).

Biography from TMDB.

Born
June 17, 1971 (55)
From
Sandefjord, Norway
Works as
Director and producer
Titles
13 on MovieCove · 14 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 26Down 32% in 30 days

What are Espen Sandberg's films like?

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

Genres

Action5 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 58th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Action movies
Adventure2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 67th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Adventure movies
Drama2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 36th 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
23%
Bonds
21%
Society
18%
Survival
17%
Morality
8%
Ideas
6%
Power
5%
Survival4 titles, browse their movies with this themeAmbition2 titles, browse their movies with this themeFriendship2 titles, browse their movies with this themeFamily bonds2 titles, browse their movies with this themeTradition vs change2 titles, browse their movies with this themeLegacy2 titles, browse their movies with this themeHope2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

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

A split, not a type: Light 5 · Serious 2 · Dark 3

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

Grounded 4 · Stylized 5 · 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 2 · Charged 3 · Intense 5

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

Steady 5 · Shifting 5 · Whiplash 0

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

A split, not a type: Straight-faced 6 · Some laughs 2 · Funny 2

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

Slow burn 3 · Even-paced 7 · Relentless 0

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

Casual 3 · Engaged 7 · Full focus 0

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

Resolved 8 · Open-ended 1 · Ambiguous 1

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Tense
7
Dread
3
Warm
3
Joyful
3
Melancholic
2
Other
10

How their films linger

Bittersweet6 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFeel-good3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteRousing3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFun2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHaunting2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHopeful2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end · 1 with a twist

  • Happy3
  • Bittersweet6
  • 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 Espen Sandberg's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 12 of their 13 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Netflix (6).

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Espen Sandberg'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

14 credits, 13 with a MovieCove page.

  • Christmas as Usual(2023)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 23rd percentile of all films

  • Troll(2022)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 33rd percentile of all films

  • Post Mortem: No One Dies in Skarnes(2021)

    Show 6 episodes · Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 53rd percentile of all shows

  • Cadaver(2020)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 16th percentile of all films

  • Amundsen(2019)

    Director · Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 48th percentile of all films

  • Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales(2017)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 58th percentile of all films

  • Marco Polo: One Hundred Eyes(2015)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 95th percentile of all films

  • Klown Forever(2015)

    as Gæst til Great Dane festen

    Midcredits score: 51st percentile of all films

  • Marco Polo(2014)

    Show 2 episodes · Director

    Midcredits score: 87th percentile of all shows

  • Beatles(2014)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 55th percentile of all films

  • Kon-Tiki(2012)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 85th percentile of all films

  • Max Manus: Man of War(2008)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 89th percentile of all films

  • Bandidas(2006)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 34th percentile of all films

  • Dag 1 (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1997)

    Director · Writer

Career shape

A full career of 14 titles from 1997 to 2023.

Biggest box office

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales (2017)

$796M worldwide

Highest rated

Marco Polo: One Hundred Eyes (2015)

Midcredits 95th

Most popular right now

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales (2017)

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting1 of 14: 1 only acting, 0 with another roleDirecting7 of 14: 5 only directing, 2 with another role · typical Midcredits score72ndWriting1 of 14: 0 only writing, 1 with another roleProducing7 of 14: 6 only producing, 1 with another role · typical Midcredits score48th

By decade

1990s1 · crew2000s2 · crew2010s7 · 1 acting · 6 crew2020s4 · 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 Espen Sandberg's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 51st percentile, the median of all 11; across their 10 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 51st percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

51stpercentile
Typical film, the median of 10

Approval · how many liked their films

50thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 10

Reach · how many have seen their films

89thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 10

Midcredits score across 13 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up4
  • 50th to 74th4
  • 25th to 49th3
  • Below 25th2

Shape of the crowd

None of their 13 titles divides audiences: 6 are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved1
  • Crowd Pleaser6
  • Broadly Agreed5
  • Mixed1

Most loved · producer

Marco Polo: One Hundred Eyes (2015)

Midcredits 95th · 89% liked

Reviewers score the atmosphere 68/100 and the pacing 47/100 in their films, across 10 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 Espen Sandberg's work okay for kids?

Across up to 6 MovieCove titles with content scores, violence & gore runs heavier than most films.

Their medianMedian of all filmsMiddle 80% of their titles
Violence & Gore5 titles47–83 · median 57 · moderateheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 44
Sex & Nudity6 titles3–40 · median 24 · mildnear the median of all filmsMedian of all films: 32
Profanity5 titles27–36 · median 31 · mildnear the median of all filmsMedian of all films: 36
Alcohol & Drugs5 titles8–44 · median 36 · moderatenear the median of all filmsMedian of all films: 33
Frightening / Intense4 titlesmedian 48 · moderateMedian 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 Espen Sandberg work with?

People who share at least 2 of Espen Sandberg's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Joachim Rønning shares the most, 6.

Directors

Actors

Composers, cinematographers and editors

Producers