M. Night Shyamalan filmography

M. Night Shyamalan filmography

Shyamalan at a press conference for The Happening in 2008

Indian-American filmmaker M. Night Shyamalan wrote, directed, and starred in his first project, the independent film Praying with Anger, while he was a student at New York University; inspired by his cultural upbringing, the movie was released in 1992 and earned him praise at film festivals. His next film, the comedy-drama Wide Awake about a grieving child struggling with his Catholic faith, was completed in 1995 but shelved by the studio Miramax until 1998. During this period, he did an uncredited rewrite of the script for the romantic-comedy She's All That that allegedly "got the movie green-lit" and co-wrote the live-action/animated film Stuart Little (both released in 1999). Also in 1999, he wrote and directed the supernatural drama The Sixth Sense, starring Bruce Willis as a child psychologist whose patient claims he can see and talk to the dead. The three projects were commercially successful, with The Sixth Sense becoming the second-highest grossing film of the year and earning Shyamalan international attention and name recognition from critics and audiences and Academy Award nominations for Best Director and Best Original Screenplay.

He reunited with Willis on the thriller Unbreakable about a seemingly average man, David Dunn, who learns he has superhuman abilities. The film co-starred Samuel L. Jackson and was released in 2000. Like Unbreakable, his science-fiction thriller Signs (2002) and period drama The Village (2004) found financial success and solidified him as a filmmaker known for his twist endings and cameo appearances. The next decade, however, saw a series of critical misfires with Lady in the Water (2006), The Happening (2008), and the higher-budgeted The Last Airbender (2010) and After Earth (2013). In 2015, he had a career resurgence after partnering with Universal Pictures on the found footage horror film The Visit, which made $98.5 million on a $5 million budget he self-funded by taking out a loan against his estate. He worked with Universal again on Split (2016) and its sequel Glass (2019), which with Unbreakable comprise the Eastrail 177 Trilogy; Old (2021); and Knock at the Cabin (2023). He partnered with Warner Bros. Pictures for his latest films: Trap (2024) and Remain (2027). Since The Visit, he has partly self-financed his films. In television, he directed the pilot of Wayward Pines (2015) and showran Servant (2019–2023).

Films

M. Night Shyamalan filmography

<table><thead><tr><th>Year</th><th>Title</th><th>Director</th><th>Writer</th><th>Producer</th><th>Notes</th><th>Ref(s)</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>1992</td><td>Praying with Anger</td><td>Yes</td><td>Yes</td><td>Yes</td><td>Student film</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>1998</td><td>Wide Awake</td><td>Yes</td><td>Yes</td><td>No</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>1999</td><td>She's All That</td><td>No</td><td>Screenplay</td><td>No</td><td>Uncredited rewrite</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>The Sixth Sense</td><td>Yes</td><td>Yes</td><td>No</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Stuart Little</td><td>No</td><td>Yes</td><td>No</td><td>Co-written with Greg Brooker</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2000</td><td>Unbreakable</td><td>Yes</td><td>Yes</td><td>Yes</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2002</td><td>Signs</td><td>Yes</td><td>Yes</td><td>Yes</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2004</td><td>The Village</td><td>Yes</td><td>Yes</td><td>Yes</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2006</td><td>Lady in the Water</td><td>Yes</td><td>Yes</td><td>Yes</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2008</td><td>The Happening</td><td>Yes</td><td>Yes</td><td>Yes</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2010</td><td>The Last Airbender</td><td>Yes</td><td>Yes</td><td>Yes</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Devil</td><td>No</td><td>Story</td><td>Yes</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2013</td><td>After Earth</td><td>Yes</td><td>Yes</td><td>Yes</td><td>Co-written with Gary Whitta</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2015</td><td>The Visit</td><td>Yes</td><td>Yes</td><td>Yes</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2016</td><td>Split</td><td>Yes</td><td>Yes</td><td>Yes</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2019</td><td>Glass</td><td>Yes</td><td>Yes</td><td>Yes</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2021</td><td>Old</td><td>Yes</td><td>Yes</td><td>Yes</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2023</td><td>Knock at the Cabin</td><td>Yes</td><td>Yes</td><td>Yes</td><td>Co-written with Steve Desmond and Michael Sherman</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2024</td><td>The Watchers</td><td>No</td><td>No</td><td>Yes</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Trap</td><td>Yes</td><td>Yes</td><td>Yes</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Caddo Lake</td><td>No</td><td>No</td><td>Yes</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2027</td><td>Remain†</td><td>Yes</td><td>Yes</td><td>Yes</td><td>Co-written with Nicholas Sparks</td><td></td></tr></tbody></table>

Television

M. Night Shyamalan filmography

<table><thead><tr><th>Year</th><th>Title</th><th>Director</th><th>Executive producer</th><th>Notes</th><th>Ref(s)</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>2015–16</td><td>Wayward Pines</td><td>Yes</td><td>Yes</td><td>Episode: "Where Paradise Is Home"</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2019–23</td><td>Servant</td><td>Yes</td><td>Yes</td><td>Episodes: "Reborn", "Jericho", "2:00", "Donkey", "Awake"</td><td></td></tr></tbody></table>

Acting credits

M. Night Shyamalan filmography

<table><thead><tr><th>Year</th><th>Title</th><th>Role</th><th>Notes</th><th>Ref(s)</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>1992</td><td>Praying with Anger</td><td>Dev Raman</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>1999</td><td>The Sixth Sense</td><td>Dr. Hill</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2000</td><td>Unbreakable</td><td>Jai</td><td>Credited as "stadium drug dealer"</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2002</td><td>Signs</td><td>Ray Reddy</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2004</td><td>The Village</td><td>Jay</td><td>Credited as "guard at desk"</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2006</td><td>Lady in the Water</td><td>Vick Ran</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2007</td><td>Entourage</td><td>Himself</td><td>Episode: "Sorry, Harvey"</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2008</td><td>The Happening</td><td>Joey</td><td>A voice role played on a phone call made by a character</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2010</td><td>The Last Airbender</td><td>Firebender at Earth Prison Camp</td><td>Uncredited</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2016</td><td>Split</td><td>Jai</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2019</td><td>Glass</td><td>Jai</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2019</td><td>Servant</td><td>Delivery man</td><td>Episode: "Reborn" uncredited</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2019, 2020</td><td>This Is Us</td><td>Himself</td><td>Episodes: "The Pool: Part Two" and "A Hell of a Week: Part Two"</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2021</td><td>Old</td><td>Theo</td><td>Credited as "hotel van driver"</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2023</td><td>Knock at the Cabin</td><td>Infomercial host</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2024</td><td>Trap</td><td>Spotter</td><td>Lady Raven's uncle</td><td></td></tr></tbody></table>

Critical and public response

M. Night Shyamalan filmography

Year	Film	Rotten Tomatoes	Metacritic	CinemaScore
1992	Praying with Anger	—N/a	—N/a	—N/a
1998	Wide Awake	45% (33 reviews)	—N/a	—N/a
1999	The Sixth Sense	86% (158 reviews)	64 (35 reviews)	A–
2000	Unbreakable	70% (173 reviews)	62 (31 reviews)	C
2002	Signs	76% (239 reviews)	59 (36 reviews)	B
2004	The Village	43% (218 reviews)	44 (40 reviews)	C
2006	Lady in the Water	25% (212 reviews)	36 (36 reviews)	B–
2008	The Happening	17% (185 reviews)	34 (38 reviews)	D
2010	The Last Airbender	5% (192 reviews)	20 (33 reviews)	C
2013	After Earth	12% (213 reviews)	33 (41 reviews)	B
2015	The Visit	68% (229 reviews)	55 (34 reviews)	B–
2016	Split	79% (311 reviews)	62 (47 reviews)	B+
2019	Glass	37% (398 reviews)	43 (53 reviews)	B
2021	Old	50% (313 reviews)	55 (52 reviews)	C+
2023	Knock at the Cabin	67% (237 reviews)	63 (54 reviews)	C
2024	Trap	56% (234 reviews)	52 (46 reviews)	C+