Skip to content
HOLLYWOOD METRICS
HomeAboutCraftNewsAnalyticsScriptsBooksPricingAPIMCP
Catalog/Action/They Live
They Live poster
A
Excellent
MASTER SCORE 80.9 / 100
1988·Action / Horror / Sci-Fi·1h 34m

THEY LIVE

“You see them on the street. You watch them on TV. You might even vote for one this fall. You think they're people just like you. You're wrong. Dead wrong.”

A lone drifter stumbles upon a unique pair of sunglasses that reveal aliens are systematically gaining control of the Earth by masquerading as humans and lulling the public into submission.

Above the Line
John Carpenter·DirectorJohn Carpenter·ScreenplayGary B. Kibbe·Director of PhotographyJohn Carpenter·Original Music ComposerFrank E. Jimenez·Editor
Cast
Roddy Piper·John NadaKeith David·Frank ArmitageMeg Foster·Holly ThompsenGeorge Buck Flower·DrifterPeter Jason·GilbertRaymond St. Jacques·Street PreacherJason Robards III·Family ManJohn Lawrence·Bearded ManSusan Barnes·Brown Haired WomanSy Richardson·Black Revolutionary
Full Crew
(8 credits)
Directing· 1
John Carpenter·Director
Writing· 1
John Carpenter·Screenplay
Camera· 1
Gary B. Kibbe·Director of Photography
Editing· 2
Frank E. Jimenez·EditorGib Jaffe·Editor
Sound & Music· 2
John Carpenter·Original Music ComposerAlan Howarth·Original Music Composer
Production· 1
Larry Franco·Producer
By the Numbers
80.9
OF 100
Master Score
7.2
OF 10
IMDb
85%
CRITICS
Rotten Tomatoes
$13M
ROI 225%
Worldwide Gross
0
Oscar Wins
Where to Watch

THE AVAILABILITY MAP

The canonical record of where this film lives across the streaming map.

Provider Index In Progress

Streaming, rental, and purchase availability for this title is being ingested from the TMDB watch-providers feed and will appear here once the next catalog refresh runs. Until then, the canonical source links below remain the fastest route.

Find on TMDB
Poster DNA

THE VISUAL DECONSTRUCTION

A bespoke vision agent's reading of the design language behind They Live's key art.

Dominant Palette
3 colors
#8B4A24
#0D0D0D
#C42F2F
Mood
Eerie, Mysterious, Intense
Composition
Split
Era
1980s
Visual Style
Photographic

“The poster features a close-up of a man's right eye and the area around it, with his hand holding up a pair of sunglasses to his face. Reflected in the lens of ”

horrorsci-fi
Key Elements
Man's EyeHandSunglassesAlien FaceCity BuildingsPalm Trees
Atmosphere
Dark
Color Mood
Mixed
Setting
Urban
Design Score
8/10
More Like This

THE NEIGHBORHOOD

Neighboring films in the catalog's similarity graph.

Keep Going

THREE WAYS DEEPER

Auteur
AUT
MORE BY JOHN CARPENTER

Every catalog entry where John Carpenter is credited as director.

Open
Family
GEN
MORE ACTION

Top-ranked films inside action, sorted by master score.

Open
Era
DEC
MORE FROM THE 1980S

The best films of the 1980s, ranked across every available metric.

Open
View on IMDbView on TMDBCatalog
HOLLYWOOD METRICS

The definitive mathematical oracle for cinematic success and creative script intelligence.

74,000+ Films100 Years1.1M+ Reviews
PRODUCT
  • Dashboard
  • Pricing
  • Script Analysis
  • Watch the Demo
  • The Red List
  • News
  • Analytics
  • API
  • MCP Connector
COMPANY
  • About
  • Track Record
  • Trust & Script Privacy
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Service
CONNECT
  • ▶YouTube
  • ◉Instagram
  • ♪TikTok
  • @Threads
  • fFacebook
Get Started Free →
© 2026 Hollywood Metrics. All rights reserved.Powered by bespoke agents and autonomous agentic workflows