---
name: "Josh Ruben"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/josh-ruben"
fi1m_id: "josh-ruben"
imdb_id: "nm2063694"
tmdb_id: 1448874
wikidata_id: "Q114908445"
roles: ["Director"]
born: "30 June 1983"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 2
average_as: "director"
average_over: 1
updated: "2026-11-01T22:55:19.039679+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."
---

# Josh Ruben

## Identity

Josh Ruben

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/person/josh-ruben
- **Type:** Person
- **Fi1m ID:** josh-ruben
- **IMDb ID:** nm2063694
- **TMDB ID:** 1448874
- **Wikidata ID:** Q114908445
- **Same entity:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Josh_Ruben, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q114908445, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2063694/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/1448874

Director. Born 30 June 1983 in Washington, D.C., USA.

## Details

- **Work:** Director
- **Born:** 30 June 1983, Washington, D.C., USA
- **Active:** 2014–present
- **Also known as:** 조쉬 루벤, Joshua Benjamin Ruben, Joshua Ruben, Josh Benjamin Ruben
- **Titles on Fi1m:** 2: 1 acting, 1 directing
- **Fi1m score by decade:** 2010s 76 (1), 2020s 71 (1)
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Josh_Ruben, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q114908445, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2063694/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/1448874

## Coming up

- *Heart Eyes 2* (2028-02-03), Screenplay

## Streaming the US now

- **Netflix:** [*Heart Eyes*](https://film.one/film/heart-eyes.md) (71)

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

## Fi1m on Josh Ruben

> Josh Ruben makes horror-comedies that take affection seriously and find laughs in gruesome interruptions. We like the warmth and comic timing; his scares need more patience, and his plotting can get cumbersome.

Olivia Holt and Mason Gooding make the awkward business of attraction worth watching in *Heart Eyes* (2025), and Josh Ruben gives them room to do it. His interruptions can be bloody, but he does not make their affection look foolish. We warmed to the pair because their tentative romance survives the violence without becoming a joke at their expense. Ruben is worth watching for that warmth, even when his ability to frighten us does not keep pace.

After writing and directing shorts at CollegeHumor, he made his feature directing debut with *Scare Me* (2020), which he also wrote and acted in. Its contained cabin setting gave way to the small-town ensemble of *Werewolves Within* (2021), a creature feature built as a whodunit. With *Heart Eyes*, he brought that interest in mixing laughter and fear to a studio slasher-romantic comedy, without treating the courtship as something to hurry through.

Ruben has worked with editor Brett W. Bachman and cinematographer Stephen Murphy, and favours a set where ideas need not come from the director. His instruction to actors is especially useful: play the terror straight rather than signal that a laugh is coming. In *Heart Eyes*, composer Jay Wadley shifts between affection and violence, although his music contributes more to the romance than to the fear. The performances make that imbalance forgivable; Holt and Gooding give us a reason to mind the interruptions.

The limitation is in how Ruben handles fear over a longer stretch. He times a gruesome surprise more confidently than he builds dread, and the cumbersome plotting of *Heart Eyes* makes some of the waiting feel like delay rather than suspense. The abrupt changes can be funny, but a successful joke does not make the scares more reliable. Try *Heart Eyes* when the choice of film has come down to a dispute between a romance and a slasher.

## Biography

Josh Ruben is an American actor, comedian, director and producer. He began his career at CollegeHumor, where he directed and appeared in numerous comedic shorts, and has continued to feature in Dropout productions.

He has directed the horror-comedy features *Scare Me* (2020), *Werewolves Within* (2021) and *Heart Eyes* (2025). He co-directed the Netflix special *Death to 2021* (2021) with Jack Clough. Ruben has also acted in television series including *You're the Worst* (as Greg) and *Hacks* (as Briian), and in films such as *For a Good Time, Call...* (2012) and *Scare Me*.

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

## On Fi1m (2)

### Performed in (1)

- *You're the Worst* (2014), Fi1m 76, as Greg — [page](https://film.one/tv/youre-the-worst.md)

### Directed (1) — the average rests on these

- *Heart Eyes* (2025), Fi1m 71, as Movie Goer — [page](https://film.one/film/heart-eyes.md)

## Complete filmography (54)

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

- *Heart Eyes 2* (2028), Screenplay, Director
- *Crossed Animals* (2026), as Little Mouse / Additional Voices (voice)
- *Toonout* (2026), series, as Little Mouse / Additional Voices (voice)
- *Ugly Cry* (2026), Actor
- *Heart Eyes* (2025), as Movie Goer · Director — Fi1m 71, [page](https://film.one/film/heart-eyes.md)
- *The Creep Tapes* (2024), series, as Brad
- *The Disruptors* (2024), Executive Producer
- *Very Important People* (2023), series, as Kepl / Dr. Milk
- *The Knowing* (2023), Producer
- *Blood Relatives* (2022), as Roger · Producer
- *A Wounded Fawn* (2022), as Bruce Ernst
- *Death to 2021* (2021), Director
- *Are You Happy Now* (2021), as Adam
- *Werewolves Within* (2021), Director
- *Plan B* (2021), as Philip Peterson
- *Hacks* (2021), series, as Briian — Fi1m 83, [page](https://film.one/tv/hacks.md)
- *Pare* (2020), as Dan · Producer
- *Troopers: Animated* (2020), series, as Larry (voice)
- *Scare Me* (2020), as Fred · Producer, Director, Writer
- *Greener Grass* (2019), as Swim Coach
- *Oh Jerome, No* (2019), series, as Dan 7 & 8
- *Troopers: Rise of the Budget* (2019), series, as Larry · Creator
- *WTF 101* (2019), series, as Hyena (voice), King Charles (voice)
- *The Shivering Truth* (2018), series, as (voice)
- *Unlovable* (2018), as Sam
- *See Plum Run* (2018), series, as Blueberry Mama Miller
- *Freddy Derryl* (2017), as Freddy · Director, Writer
- *What Children Do* (2017), as Pat
- *Tond* (2016), Director
- *See You Around* (2016), as Thomas
- *Donald and Jess* (2015), Actor
- *Worst Friends* (2014), as Marky
- *The Britishes* (2014), series, as Mr. Squint
- *You're the Worst* (2014), series, as Greg — Fi1m 76, [page](https://film.one/tv/youre-the-worst.md)
- *CAMP* (2013), series, as Harry, Duncan, Cyrus, Hector, Josh, Franklin, Barbara, Jarvin · Writer, Creator
- *Precious Plum* (2013), series, as Mama, Maybe Daddy
- *Yay or Nay* (2013), series, Actor
- *Final Destination* (2012), series, as Josh, Gale
- *For a Good Time, Call...* (2012), as Lamp Guy
- *Pizza Quest!* (2011), Director
- *Troopers* (2011), series, as Larry
- *Hello, My Name Is* (2010), series, as Duncan Donuss, Barq Dogg · Executive from Hell, Gale Beggy, Donna Higby, Perry Martin, Denise's Friend, Michael, Maxmillion Jul, Yeardly Tinsley
- *Full Benefits* (2010), series, as Josh
- *Josh’s Mindhouse* (2010), series, Creator
- *Very Mary-Kate* (2010), series, as Philip Seymour Hoffman
- *Obvious Child* (2009), as Joe
- *CollegeHumor Live* (2008), series, Actor
- *Hardly Working* (2008), series, Actor
- *Hardly Working: All-Nighters* (2008), series, as Josh, Gale Beggy, Thug #1, Phil Hoffman, Hans Gruber, Masked Creep, Roger
- *Phantom of the Office* (2008), series, as Gale Beggy
- *POV* (2008), series, as Josh · Director
- *CollegeHumor Shorts* (2007), series, as Lt. Christopher Johnson, Col. Hans Landa, Tweetlejuice, Doctor, Pet Store Employee, Josh, Sim · Director
- *Wilderness Reform*, Director
- *Green Bank*, Director, Producer

## Gallery

- ![Josh Ruben](https://film.one/media/person/972718/gallery-e5f79984b67b.jpg) Josh Ruben — Benjamin Ragheb from New York, NY, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/26/Josh_Ruben_2012_%288470212780%29_%28cropped%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled)
- ![Hosted by Rob Stern, “Overload The Machine” features some of the funniest comedians in NYC performing as characters. The Live show is at The Peoples Improv Thea (2011)](https://film.one/media/person/972718/gallery-b82eb35aed91.jpg) Hosted by Rob Stern, “Overload The Machine” features some of the funniest comedians in NYC performing as characters. The Live show is at The Peoples Improv Thea (2011) — Benjamin Ragheb from New York, NY, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/13/Josh_Ruben_%286176397246%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled)
- ![Josh Ruben at "The Fascinator", a panel quiz show at the new UCB East Theatre, featuring interesting and tricky facts to puzzle a new panel of hilarious and cha (2012)](https://film.one/media/person/972718/gallery-dab8886ec9fe.jpg) Josh Ruben at "The Fascinator", a panel quiz show at the new UCB East Theatre, featuring interesting and tricky facts to puzzle a new panel of hilarious and cha (2012) — Benjamin Ragheb from New York, NY, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Josh_Ruben_%288469119797%29.jpg/1280px-Josh_Ruben_%288469119797%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Hosted by Rob Stern, “Overload The Machine” features some of the funniest comedians in NYC performing as characters. The Live show is at The Peoples Improv Thea (2011)](https://film.one/media/person/972718/gallery-ad278673b8c7.jpg) Hosted by Rob Stern, “Overload The Machine” features some of the funniest comedians in NYC performing as characters. The Live show is at The Peoples Improv Thea (2011) — Benjamin Ragheb from New York, NY, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/99/Josh_Ruben_%286176397622%29.jpg/1280px-Josh_Ruben_%286176397622%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Josh Ruben](https://film.one/media/person/972718/gallery-2d334e071894.jpg) Josh Ruben — Image via TMDB

---
© 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/josh-ruben