---
name: "David Slade"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/david-slade"
fi1m_id: "david-slade"
imdb_id: "nm1720541"
tmdb_id: 27571
wikidata_id: "Q371455"
roles: ["Director"]
born: "26 September 1969"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 4
average_fi1m_score: 77
average_as: "director"
average_over: 4
updated: "2026-10-05T11:42:24.563647+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# David Slade

## Identity

David Slade

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/person/david-slade
- **Type:** Person
- **Fi1m ID:** david-slade
- **IMDb ID:** nm1720541
- **TMDB ID:** 27571
- **Wikidata ID:** Q371455
- **Same entity:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Slade, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q371455, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1720541/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/27571

Director. Born 26 September 1969 in UK.

## Details

- **Work:** Director
- **Born:** 26 September 1969, UK
- **Active:** 2008–2013
- **Also known as:** David Aldrin Slade, David A. Slade
- **Frequently works with:** [John Dahl](https://film.one/person/john-dahl.md), [Peter Medak](https://film.one/person/peter-medak.md), [Tim Hunter](https://film.one/person/tim-hunter.md)
- **Average Fi1m score:** 77, as director, over 4 titles
- **Fi1m score by decade:** 2000s 91 (1), 2010s 72 (3)
- **Fi1m against the critics:** 77 to 72 across 4 titles
- **Score spread:** 3 at 80+, 0 at 60–79, 1 under 60
- **Genres:** Drama 4, Crime 2, Adventure 1, Fantasy 1, Mystery 1, Romance 1
- **Screen time:** 2 hours of reviewed films
- **Box office:** $698m across 1 films with figures
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Slade, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q371455, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1720541/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/27571

## Streaming the US now

- **Netflix:** [*Breaking Bad*](https://film.one/tv/breaking-bad.md) (91), [*Hannibal*](https://film.one/tv/hannibal-2013.md) (81), [*Black Mirror*](https://film.one/tv/black-mirror.md) (81)
- **Amazon Prime Video:** [*The Twilight Saga: Eclipse*](https://film.one/film/the-twilight-saga-eclipse.md) (55)

For United States; add `?region=XX` for another country.

## Fi1m on David Slade

> David Slade is good at making dark material unsettling to look at, particularly on television. We recommend his tightly controlled suspense, while resisting the idea that keeping us uncomfortable is enough on its own.

In *Metalhead* (2017), David Slade gives *Black Mirror* a stark black-and-white treatment. We were unsettled by the severity of those images, which give the eye little comfort. The episode makes a good case for him as a director of controlled unease, able to make a visual choice matter beyond its immediate appeal. We rate that precision, with a reservation about how much punishment a story needs before its point is clear.

*Hard Candy* (2005), his feature debut, established the contained psychological thriller as a useful home for him. He followed it with the horror of *30 Days of Night* (2007) and the franchise assignment *The Twilight Saga: Eclipse* (2010). His earlier work in music videos and commercials helps account for his appetite for camera movement and visual invention. But the move towards television from 2011 is the turn that interests us more than the progression towards studio features. An episode gives a director with his particular strengths a defined stretch in which to build and sustain tension.

Our enthusiasm for *Black Mirror* rests on its straight-faced absurdity and on performances that make the distress matter. That is a judgement of the series, not a claim that Slade is responsible for everything it does well. He has directed several instalments, including the interactive *Black Mirror: Bandersnatch* (2018), where the format presents a different directing problem from *Metalhead*'s visual restrictions. Our reservation about the programme remains relevant: it sometimes keeps tightening the screws after its point is clear, and technical assurance does not make the extra suffering necessary.

*Hannibal* (2013) also makes sense as a home for him: he directed its pilot and further episodes, helping to establish the programme's dark world. His work there gives us another reason to value him beyond a single striking image; he can establish a setting that sustains a series. His recurring collaboration with composer Brian Reitzell is also a reason not to give the director sole credit for the atmosphere of his work. Start with *Metalhead* if concentrated unease is what the evening needs.

## Biography

David Aldrin Slade (born 26 September 1969) is an English film and television director. He began his career directing music videos and commercials before moving into features.

His feature films include *Hard Candy* (2005), *30 Days of Night* (2007), *The Twilight Saga: Eclipse* (2010), *Black Mirror: Bandersnatch* (2018) and *Dark Harvest* (2023). He has also directed episodes of television series including *Breaking Bad*, *Hannibal*, *American Gods* and *Black Mirror*.

*Sources: en.wikipedia.org, imdb.com.*

## On Fi1m (4)

- *Hannibal* (2013), Fi1m 81, Director — [page](https://film.one/tv/hannibal-2013.md)
- *Black Mirror* (2011), Fi1m 81, Director — [page](https://film.one/tv/black-mirror.md)
- *The Twilight Saga: Eclipse* (2010), Fi1m 55, Director — [page](https://film.one/film/the-twilight-saga-eclipse.md)
- *Breaking Bad* (2008), Fi1m 91, Director — [page](https://film.one/tv/breaking-bad.md)

## Complete filmography (21)

Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page.

- *Dark Harvest* (2023), Director
- *Red Bird Lane* (2021), Executive Producer, Director
- *Barkskins* (2020), series, Director
- *Black Mirror: Bandersnatch* (2018), Director
- *Nightmare Cinema* (2018), Director, Screenplay
- *American Gods* (2017), series, Director, Executive Producer
- *Powers* (2015), series, Director
- *Crossbones* (2014), series, Director
- *Hannibal* (2013), series, Director — Fi1m 81, [page](https://film.one/tv/hannibal-2013.md)
- *Awake* (2012), series, Director
- *Black Mirror* (2011), series, Director — Fi1m 81, [page](https://film.one/tv/black-mirror.md)
- *The Twilight Saga Soundtracks, Vol 1: Music Videos and Performances* (2010), Director
- *The Twilight Saga: Eclipse* (2010), Director — Fi1m 55, [page](https://film.one/film/the-twilight-saga-eclipse.md)
- *Meat Dog: What's fer Dinner?* (2008), Director, Writer
- *Breaking Bad* (2008), series, Director — Fi1m 91, [page](https://film.one/tv/breaking-bad.md)
- *30 Days of Night* (2007), Director
- *Hard Candy* (2006), Director
- *Do Geese See God* (2004), Director
- *WarpVision: The Videos 1989-2004* (2004), Director
- *(Motion)* (1994), Animation, Director
- *Legacy*, Director

## Gallery

- ![David Slade](https://film.one/media/person/46738/gallery-da73c45e38fc.jpg) David Slade — Nicole Chapman, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0d/David_slade_eclipse_premiere.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled)
- ![David Slade and Martha De Laurentiis speaking at the 2014 San Diego Comic Con International, for "Hannibal", at the San Diego Convention Center in San Diego, Ca](https://film.one/media/person/46738/gallery-40fbbe80ef51.jpg) David Slade and Martha De Laurentiis speaking at the 2014 San Diego Comic Con International, for "Hannibal", at the San Diego Convention Center in San Diego, Ca — Gage Skidmore from Peoria, AZ, United States of America, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1a/David_Slade_%26_Martha_De_Laurentiis_%2814770279754%29.jpg/1280px-David_Slade_%26_Martha_De_Laurentiis_%2814770279754%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Steven Lightfoot and David Slade speaking at the 2014 San Diego Comic Con International, for "Hannibal", at the San Diego Convention Center in San Diego, Califo](https://film.one/media/person/46738/gallery-905d1cc6c0be.jpg) Steven Lightfoot and David Slade speaking at the 2014 San Diego Comic Con International, for "Hannibal", at the San Diego Convention Center in San Diego, Califo — Gage Skidmore from Peoria, AZ, United States of America, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1c/David_Slade_2014_Comic_Con_1.jpg/1280px-David_Slade_2014_Comic_Con_1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Raúl Esparza, Scott Thompson, Caroline Dhavernas, Steven Lightfoot, David Slade, Martha De Laurentiis and Bryan Fuller speaking at the 2014 San Diego Comic Con ](https://film.one/media/person/46738/gallery-74561b595f77.jpg) Raúl Esparza, Scott Thompson, Caroline Dhavernas, Steven Lightfoot, David Slade, Martha De Laurentiis and Bryan Fuller speaking at the 2014 San Diego Comic Con  — Gage Skidmore from Peoria, AZ, United States of America, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1a/Ra%C3%BAl_Esparza%2C_Scott_Thompson%2C_Caroline_Dhavernas%2C_Steven_Lightfoot%2C_David_Slade%2C_Martha_De_Laurentiis_%26_Bryan_Fuller_%2814769458711%29.jpg/1280px-Ra%C3%BAl_Esparza%2C_Scott_Thompson%2C_Caroline_Dhavernas%2C_Steven_Lightfoot%2C_David_Slade%2C_Martha_De_Laurentiis_%26_Bryan_Fuller_%2814769458711%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Raúl Esparza, Scott Thompson, Caroline Dhavernas, Steven Lightfoot, David Slade and Martha De Laurentiis speaking at the 2014 San Diego Comic Con International,](https://film.one/media/person/46738/gallery-23702515ff1f.jpg) Raúl Esparza, Scott Thompson, Caroline Dhavernas, Steven Lightfoot, David Slade and Martha De Laurentiis speaking at the 2014 San Diego Comic Con International, — Gage Skidmore from Peoria, AZ, United States of America, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/93/Ra%C3%BAl_Esparza%2C_Scott_Thompson%2C_Caroline_Dhavernas%2C_Steven_Lightfoot%2C_David_Slade_%26_Martha_De_Laurentiis_%2814772276472%29.jpg/1280px-Ra%C3%BAl_Esparza%2C_Scott_Thompson%2C_Caroline_Dhavernas%2C_Steven_Lightfoot%2C_David_Slade_%26_Martha_De_Laurentiis_%2814772276472%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Steven Lightfoot and David Slade speaking at the 2014 San Diego Comic Con International, for "Hannibal", at the San Diego Convention Center in San Diego, Califo](https://film.one/media/person/46738/gallery-6070b969639f.jpg) Steven Lightfoot and David Slade speaking at the 2014 San Diego Comic Con International, for "Hannibal", at the San Diego Convention Center in San Diego, Califo — Gage Skidmore from Peoria, AZ, United States of America, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1f/Steven_Lightfoot_%26_David_Slade_%2814792488683%29.jpg/1280px-Steven_Lightfoot_%26_David_Slade_%2814792488683%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/david-slade