Josh Ruben
American actor and director (born 1983)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Joshua Benjamin Ruben (born June 30, 1983)[1] is an American actor, comedian, director, and producer. He formerly worked for CollegeHumor and continues to appear in Dropout original shows.
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June 30, 1983
- Actor
- comedian
- director
- producer
Josh Ruben | |
|---|---|
Ruben in 2012 | |
| Born | Joshua Benjamin Ruben June 30, 1983 Washington, D.C., U.S. |
| Occupations |
|
| Website | joshsmindhouse |
Early life and education
Ruben was born in Washington, D.C.[2] He grew up in Woodstock, New York, with two half-siblings, one of whom is the singer-songwriter Rachael Yamagata.[2][3] He acted in youth theatre and aspired to become a comic actor.[3] He graduated from Onteora High School in 2001.[3] He worked at a gas station before being accepted into the New Actors Workshop in New York City at age 19.[3][4]
Career
Unable to get an agent in his first years in New York City, Ruben worked as a film extra and at Best Buy.[3] With childhood friend Sam Reich and others, he formed the comedy group Dutch West, which made sketch comedy videos for the internet.[3][4] Thanks to his work with the group, CollegeHumor hired him as a staffer, and he wrote and directed hundreds of its "Originals" short videos.[3][4] He has appeared on the Dropout game show Game Changer and its spinoff Make Some Noise, both hosted by Reich, and is credited as an executive producer on the latter series.[5]
Ruben moved to Los Angeles in 2016.[3] He drew from his CollegeHumor 401(k) to write, produce, and direct Scare Me, a comedy horror film shot at Cooper Lake outside of Woodstock.[3][4] Starring Ruben as an aspiring writer staying in a cabin in the woods, it premiered at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival.[4] His next film, Werewolves Within, based on the video game, was also shot in the area in the Hudson Valley.[3][4] It premiered to critical acclaim at the Tribeca Festival in June 2021.[6][7] He directed Heart Eyes, a romantic comedy slasher film.[8] He is set to direct the sci-fi horror film Green Bank[9][7] as well as the horror film Wilderness Reform.[10]
Filmography
Short film
| Year | Title | Director | Writer | Executive Producer |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Zoolander Returns to the Runway | Yes | No | No | Co-directed with Vincent Peone |
| 2016 | Tond | Yes | No | No | |
| 2017 | Freddy Derryl | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| Cabin | No | Yes | Yes |
Feature film
- Scare Me (2020) (Also writer and producer)
- Werewolves Within (2021)
- Heart Eyes (2025)
Television
| Year | Title | Director | Writer | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009–2013 | CollegeHumor | Yes | Yes | Directed 48 episodes; Wrote 22 episodes |
| 2012–2013 | Hardly Working | Yes | Yes | Directed episode "Fire Warden"; Wrote 4 episodes |
| 2013 | Remix the Movies | Yes | No | 7 episodes |
| 2014 | That Couple You Know | Yes | No | |
| Step 9 | Yes | No | 3 episodes | |
| CQ Originals | Yes | No | Episode "Adam Drive Meets His Man Crush" | |
| 2015 | Adam Ruins Everything | Yes | No | 3 episodes |
| 2016 | Boondoggle | Yes | No | Episodes "Pilot Error" and "The Course" |
| 2021 | Death to 2021 | Yes | No | Co-directed with Jack Clough |
| 2024 | Die Hart | Yes | No | 7 episodes |
