What is Burn After Reading's IQ Score?

Burn After Reading has an IQ Score of 137/200 on TV Intelligentsia's Intelligence Quotient framework, placing it in the Stimulating tier. The score breaks down to 35/50 Cognitive Stimulation, 33/50 Educational Value, and 35/50 Craft & Quality.

Is Burn After Reading educational?

Burn After Reading is moderate on educational value, 33/50 on TVI's rubric. Some learning happens, but it isn't the show's primary work.

How does TV Intelligentsia calculate IQ Score?

TV Intelligentsia's IQ Score is calculated as round((Cognitive Stimulation × 0.4 + Educational Value × 0.35 + Craft & Quality × 0.25) × 4), scoring titles from 0 to 200 across five tiers: Masterclass (≥160), Stimulating (≥130), Competent (≥100), Passive (≥70), and Numbing (<70). The framework is published at tvintelligentsia.com/methodology/.

Burn After Reading , IQ Score 137/200

Burn After Reading has an IQ Score of 137/200 on TV Intelligentsia's Intelligence Quotient rubric, placing it in the Stimulating tier.

By Jordan Robinson, MD, MPH·Updated 2026-06-17·Methodology

dark-comedycrimesatire

137/ 200

Stimulating

Consistently challenges the viewer and rewards attention

Score Breakdown

Cognitive Stimulation/50

Educational Value/50

Craft & Quality/50

IQ = round((Cognitive × 0.4 + Educational × 0.35 + Craft × 0.25) × 4) · How we score →

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Why you should trust this score

Scored under Jordan Robinson, MD, MPH

Physician and founding editor. Maintains the adult catalog against the published rubric and reviews the rubric application.

Methodology

Published rubric, v1.2

Formula

round(C × 0.40 + E × 0.35 + Q × 0.25) × 4

Database scale

2,338 titles, version-controlled

TVI Canon

Coen Brothers →

How we stay independent. We accept no studio money. We pay for our own streaming subscriptions. Our reviewers see no sponsor data, no affiliate revenue, and no screener access in exchange for coverage. More about how we work →

The TVI Take

The Coens' CIA satire whose central argument is that institutional incompetence and personal narcissism compound into geopolitical-grade idiocy faster than anyone notices. The ensemble (Clooney, Pitt, McDormand, Malkovich, Swinton) operates as a relay system for stupidity; the film's J.K.

Simmons CIA-summary scene is one of the most structurally pointed punch lines in the Coens' work.

Where to Watch

Stream