One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

1975 · Movie · R · 133 min

More from Fantasy FilmsMore advocacy-driven than 95% of Drama titles →
IMDBTMDB
Research evidenceResearch evidence — scores and sourced research

Scored entertainment-first on WhatSphere's content-balance model 4

Its director stated on the record that "the Communist Party was my Nurse Ratched, telling me what I could and could not do; what I was or was not allowed to say; where I was and was not allowed to go…" 1. Its producer stated on the record that "i think it just is a good reminder, particularly in our country right now, on the importance of the individual, the importance of individuality, This is what m…" 2. Its producer stated on the record that "it was not anti-woman, it was anti-institutional power over the individual" 3. Taken together, the content-balance model places it entertainment-first at 13 of 100 4. Relative to the expected cast make-up for its production origin, on-screen representation registers above the baseline for White and below it for Hispanic 5.

The receipts — every claim above is sourced
  1. 1
    Creator statementdirector: "The Communist Party was my Nurse Ratched, telling me what I could and could not do; what I was or was not allowed to say; where I was and was not allowed to go; even who I was and was not."Directors Guild of America, cited in film retrospectives source ↗
  2. 2
    Creator statementproducer: "I think it just is a good reminder, particularly in our country right now, on the importance of the individual, the importance of individuality. This is what makes our country so special, and the str…"Newsweek, 2025 (50th anniversary) source ↗
  3. 3
    Creator statementproducer: "It was not anti-woman, it was anti-institutional power over the individual."The Wrap, 2025 (50th anniversary interview) source ↗
  4. 4
    Content balanceAdvocacy 13 of 100, tier entertainment-first.WhatSphere content-balance model, score_version 1
  5. 5
    RepresentationRepresentation vs production-origin baseline: White 88, Hispanic 28.WhatSphere representation model, score_version 1

WhatSphere presents the sourced record; it does not cast the judgement. Every statement above is drawn from a stored, sourced row — shown beside it — and nothing is asserted beyond what those receipts support.

Data updated March 23, 2026Scored, pending verification.Think a score is wrong? Submit a correction.

Synopsis

A petty criminal fakes insanity to serve his sentence in a mental ward rather than prison. He soon finds himself as a leader to the other patients—and an enemy to the cruel, domineering nurse who runs the ward.

Young MaleYoung FemaleMature MaleMature Female
Primary audienceOlder Men
Targeted

Quadrant Scores

Young Men
58
Young Women
0
Older Men
100
Older Women
42
Advocacy13
Entertainment

Audience Representation

White
88
Black
41
Hispanic
28
Asian
38
South Asian
46
Middle Eastern
48
Indigenous
52
Mixed
42
Other
48
LGBTQ+
0

Where to Watch (US)

Rent
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Score version: v1Data confidence: 100%How are scores calculated?

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Advocacy Over Time in Drama

The average advocacy score of Drama titles by release year, with this title marked. Higher is more advocacy-driven.

25507519202026
Average advocacy score of Drama titles by release year
YearAverage advocacyTitles
192002
192502
192702
192803
192922
193006
193114
193205
193602
193703
193972
194003
194102
194205
194303
194407
194613
194702
194824
195026
195115
195216
1953010
195414
195518
195627
1957110
195836
195919
1960012
196117
1962212
1963014
196418
1965211
1966010
196707
196819
1969010
1970110
197108
197209
1973014
1974115
1975213
1976120
197708
197805
1979111
1980113
198108
1982113
1983015
1984114
1985211
1986212
1987119
1988213
1989116
1990014
1991214
1992218
1993123
1994225
1995226
1996229
1997223
1998324
1999342
2000241
2001241
2002241
2003236
2004265
2005267
2006182
2007168
2008149
2009228
2010522
2011324
2012219
2013424
2014622
2015719
2016523
2017831
2018535
2019736
2020534
2021935
20221434
20231218
2024917
2025314
2026911
This title (1975)131

This title (1975): advocacy 13 · explore Drama

Cast & Crew

Irby Smith (director) · Haskell Wexler (director)