Josh Ruben


Joshua Benjamin Ruben is an American actor, comedian, director, and producer. He formerly worked for CollegeHumor and continues to appear in Dropout original shows.

Early life and education

Ruben was born in Washington, D.C. He grew up in Woodstock, New York, with two half-siblings, one of whom is the singer-songwriter Rachael Yamagata. He acted in youth theatre and aspired to become a comic actor. He graduated from Onteora High School in 2001. He worked at a gas station before being accepted into the New Actors Workshop in New York City at age 19.

Career

Unable to get an agent in his first years in New York City, Ruben worked as a film extra and at Best Buy. With childhood friend Sam Reich and others, he formed the comedy group Dutch West, which made sketch comedy videos for the internet. Thanks to his work with the group, CollegeHumor hired him as a staffer, and he wrote and directed hundreds of its "Originals" short videos. 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.
Ruben moved to Los Angeles in 2016. He drew from his CollegeHumor 401 to write, produce, and direct Scare Me, a comedy horror film shot at Cooper Lake outside of Woodstock. Starring Ruben as an aspiring writer staying in a cabin in the woods, it premiered at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival. His next film, Werewolves Within, based on the video game, was also shot in the area in the Hudson Valley. It premiered to critical acclaim at the Tribeca Festival in June 2021. He directed Heart Eyes, a romantic comedy slasher film. He is set to direct the sci-fi horror film Green Bank as well as the horror film Wilderness Reform.

Filmography

Short film
YearTitleDirectorWriterExecutive
Producer		Notes
2015Zoolander Returns to the RunwayCo-directed with Vincent Peone
2016TondCo-directed with Vincent Peone
2017Freddy Derryl
2017Cabin

Feature film
  • Scare Me
  • Werewolves Within
  • Heart Eyes
Television
YearTitleDirectorWriterNotes
2009-2013CollegeHumorDirected 48 episodes;
Wrote 22 episodes
2012-2013Hardly WorkingDirected episode "Fire Warden";
Wrote 4 episodes
2013Remix the Movies7 episodes
2014That Couple You Know
2014Step 93 episodes
2014CQ OriginalsEpisode "Adam Drive Meets His Man Crush"
2015Adam Ruins Everything3 episodes
2016BoondoggleEpisodes "Pilot Error" and "The Course"
2021Death to 2021Co-directed with Jack Clough
2024Die Hart7 episodes