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Ruben Fleischer
American film director
American film director
| Field | Value | |
|---|---|---|
| name | Ruben Fleischer | |
| image | Ruben Fleischer by Gage Skidmore.jpg | |
| caption | Fleischer at the 2018 San Diego Comic-Con | |
| birth_name | Ruben Samuel Fleischer | |
| birth_date | ||
| birth_place | Washington, D.C., U.S. | |
| education | Wesleyan University | |
| occupation | {{flatlist | |
| years_active | 2000–present | |
| spouse |
- Film director
- film producer
- television producer
- music video director
- commercial director Ruben Samuel Fleischer (; born October 31, 1974) is an American film director, film producer, television producer, music video director, and commercial director. He is best known as the director of Zombieland (2009), his first feature film, and its sequel Zombieland: Double Tap (2019). He has also directed the films 30 Minutes or Less, Gangster Squad, Uncharted, and 2018's Venom featuring the Marvel Comics character of the same name. Prior to features, he directed television commercials for such brands as Cisco, Eurostar, ESPN, and Burger King, and music videos for artists such as M.I.A., Electric Six, DJ Format and Gold Chains.
Early life
Fleischer was born and raised in Washington, D.C, the son of Karen Lee (née Samuel) and David Elliot Fleischer, who is a physician at the Mayo Clinic in Arizona and a professor of medicine. His brother, Lucas, works in new media. His father was born to a Jewish family, while his mother converted to Judaism. Fleischer was raised in Reform Judaism.
After graduating with a major in history from Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut, Fleischer moved to San Francisco, where he worked as a freelance HTML programmer, unsure what he wanted to do with his life.
Career
Taking the advice of close friend Mike White (also a Wesleyan graduate), Fleischer worked as a PA in the writers' office of Dawson's Creek.
Fleischer directed Gangster Squad, a 2013 action thriller film, based on the special tactical group created by the LAPD to combat the Los Angeles crime family. He next directed Venom, a film about Marvel Comics character Eddie Brock, starring Tom Hardy; it was released on October 5, 2018.
In 2019, he directed Zombieland: Double Tap, reuniting the four original leads. In February 2020, he was hired to direct Uncharted, based on the video game series of the same name. In September 2022, he was hired to direct Now You See Me: Now You Don't.
Filmography
Short film
| Year | Title | Director | Producer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | The Girls Guitar Club | ||
| 2005 | Gumball 3000: 6 Days in May |
Feature film
| Year | Title | Director | Executive |
|---|---|---|---|
| producer | |||
| 2009 | Zombieland | ||
| 2011 | 30 Minutes or Less | ||
| 2013 | Gangster Squad | ||
| 2018 | Venom | ||
| The Mule | |||
| 2019 | Zombieland: Double Tap | ||
| 2021 | Venom: Let There Be Carnage | ||
| 2022 | Uncharted | ||
| 2025 | Now You See Me: Now You Don't |
;Producer
- Two Night Stand (2014)
- Unicorn Store (2017)
- Bad Trip (2021)
- Little Brother (2026)
Television
| Year | Title | Director | Executive | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| producer | Notes | |||
| 2003–2006 | Jimmy Kimmel Live! | 3 episodes | ||
| 2006–2007 | Rob & Big | Also creator | ||
| 2008 | Between Two Ferns with Zach Galifianakis | 2 episodes | ||
| 2009–2015 | Fantasy Factory | Also creator | ||
| 2010 | Funny or Die Presents | 4 episodes | ||
| 2015 | Marry Me | Episode "F Me" | ||
| 2015–2021 | Superstore | Directed 7 episodes | ||
| 2016 | American Housewife | Directed episode "Pilot" | ||
| 2017 | Santa Clarita Diet | Directed 2 episodes | ||
| 2017–2021 | The Bold Type | |||
| 2019–2020 | Stumptown | Directed 1 episode | ||
| 2023 | The Good Doctor | 1 episode | ||
| White House Plumbers | ||||
| Jury Duty | ||||
| 2024 | St. Denis Medical | Directed 2 episodes | ||
| 2025 | Motorheads |
Music video
| Title | Artist |
|---|---|
| "Galang" | M.I.A. |
| "Fix Up, Look Sharp" | Dizzee Rascal |
| "Stand Up Tall" | |
| "Pro Nails" | Kid Sister |
| "I Came From SF" | Gold Chains |
| "Cali Nights" | |
| "The Game" | |
| "Nada" | |
| "Dance Commander" | Electric Six |
| "Vicious Battle Raps" | DJ Format |
| "We Know Something You Don't" | |
| "The Hit Song" | |
| "Mocito" | Pigeon Funk |
| "Pies" | Wiley |
| "Dirty Girl" | Bobby Light |
| "Wash in the Rain" | The Bees |
| "Here She Comes Again" | The Stands |
| "I Believe in You" | Amp Fiddler |
| "Stadtkind" | Ellen Allien |
| "Time Bomb" | The Dismemberment Plan |
| "Just a Simple Plan" | Piebald |
| "French Jacuzzi Dub" | Explosion Robinson |
| "Come On to Me" | Major Lazer featuring Sean Paul |
Commercials
| Title | Brand |
|---|---|
| "Ladies Man" | Boost Mobile |
| "Geek" | |
| "Shopaholic" | |
| "Good Inside" | McDonald's |
| "After Party" | |
| "Revision 43A" | Cisco |
| "Jack 245" | |
| "Call Jimmy" | |
| "Manager" | |
| "Up Late with The King" | Burger King |
| "Handoff" | |
| "Bounce" | |
| "Circles" | Eurostar |
| "Quiet" | ESPN |
| "Mascots" | |
| "The Drop" | Courir |
| "Nose" | Cinnamon Toast Crunch |
| "Infomercial" | Borat soundtrack |
| "Believe It or Not" | G4 |
| "Asai Kenichi" | Levi's |
| "Hiroshi Fujiwara" | |
| "Chara" | |
| "Cops" | Ribena |
| "Down Home" | KFC |
| "Har Mar Superstar" | Vladivar |
| "A Way In" | Vogue |
Reception
| Year | Title | Rotten Tomatoes Rating (%) | Budget ($) | Box office ($) | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Zombieland | 89% | url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=zombieland.htm | title=Zombieland | work=Box Office Mojo | access-date=March 14, 2010 | archive-date=March 30, 2010 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100330023111/http://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=zombieland.htm | url-status=live}} | 102.4 million | |||
| 2011 | 30 Minutes or Less | 45% | last=Kaufman | first=Amy | date=August 11, 2011 | title=Movie Projector: 'Apes' likely to swing higher than 'The Help' | url=http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/entertainmentnewsbuzz/2011/08/movie-projector-the-help-30-minutes-or-less-final-destination-glee.html | access-date=August 11, 2011 | work=Los Angeles Times}} | title=30 Minutes or Less (2011) | url=http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=30minutesorless.htm | access-date=2018-04-17 | publisher=Box Office Mojo}} |
| 2013 | Gangster Squad | 30% | 60–75 million | title=Gangster Squad (2013) | url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=gangstersquad.htm | access-date=November 9, 2016 | website=Box Office Mojo}} | ||||||
| 2018 | Venom | 31% | 100–116 million | id=1270797 | title=Venom (2018) | access-date=February 20, 2021}} | |||||||
| The Mule | 70% | 50 million | title=The Mule (2018) | url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=themule.htm | access-date=October 30, 2019 | work=Box Office Mojo}} | |||||||
| 2019 | Zombieland: Double Tap | 68% | date=September 26, 2019 | title=Box Office: 'Maleficent: Mistress of Evil' Eyes $50 Million Launch | url=https://variety.com/2019/film/box-office/maleficent-2-box-office-opening-tracking-1203350392/ | url-status=live | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201019174433/https://variety.com/2019/film/box-office/maleficent-2-box-office-opening-tracking-1203350392/ | archive-date=October 19, 2020 | access-date=September 26, 2019 | publisher=Variety}} | 125.2 million | ||
| 2021 | Venom: Let There Be Carnage | 57% | 110 million | id=Venom-Let-There-be-Carnage | title=Venom: Let There Be Carnage (2021) | access-date=January 28, 2022}} | |||||||
| 2022 | Uncharted | 41% | 120 million | title=Uncharted | id=Uncharted-(2022) | access-date=June 21, 2022}} | |||||||
| 2025 | Now You See Me: Now You Don't | 61% | 90 million | 219 million |
Collaborations
Like many directors, Fleischer has worked with certain actors on two or more of his films:
| Actor | Zombieland | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| (2009) | 30 Minutes or Less | ||||||||
| (2011) | Gangster Squad | ||||||||
| (2013) | Venom | ||||||||
| (2018) | Zombieland: Double Tap | ||||||||
| (2019) | Uncharted | ||||||||
| (2022) | Now You See Me: Now You Don't | ||||||||
| (2025) | Total | ||||||||
| Abigail Breslin | 2 | ||||||||
| Jesse Eisenberg | 4 | ||||||||
| Woody Harrelson | 4 | ||||||||
| Bill Murray | 2 | ||||||||
| Michael Peña | 2 | ||||||||
| Emma Stone | 3 |
References
References
- (August 15, 1996). "Jennings, Hughes, Wilkes, Webber, Aldridge U.K.:Information about Ruben Samuel Fleischer". Familytreemaker.genealogy.com.
- (November 14, 2012). "Emma Stone officiates a wedding – just like these other celebrities". UsMagazine.com.
- Bloomer, Jeffrey. (April 2025). "Getting to Know... Zombieland director Ruben Fleischer". Paste Magazine.
- Hornaday, Ann. (October 17, 2009). "With 'Zombieland,' D.C. Native Ruben Fleischer Turns His Directorial Debut Into a Hit". Washingtonpost.com.
- "Gangster Squad's Comedy Nerd – The Arty Semite – Forward.com". Blogs.forward.com.
- Ann Hornaday. (October 17, 2009). "Don of the Dead". The Washington Post.
- [https://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/06/movies/sean-penn-in-ruben-fleischers-gangster-squad.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0 Ruben Fleischer’s ‘Gangster Squad’], New York Times. By Michael Cieply. Published: January 4, 2013. Retrieved February 6, 2013.
- Steve Weintraub. (July 9, 2009). "Director Ruben Fleischer Interview ZOMBIELAND". Collider Magazine.
- Germain Lussier. (April 22, 2011). "'30 Minutes Or Less' Teaser Posters". Slashfilm.
- (July 26, 2011). "Emma Stone rounds up 'Gangster Squad'". [[Reed Business Information]].
- Kroll, Justin. (October 10, 2016). "Tom Hardy to Star in 'Spider-Man' Movie 'Venom,' Ruben Fleischer to Direct". Variety.
- Michael Kennedy. (March 23, 2017). "''Zombieland 2'' Writers Reveal Script is Completed". Screen Rant.
- Kroll, Justin. (March 2, 2020). "Antonio Banderas Joins Tom Holland in 'Uncharted' Movie (EXCLUSIVE)".
- (September 29, 2022). "Ruben Fleischer To Direct Next 'Now You See Me' Pic For Lionsgate".
- "Zombieland". [[Box Office Mojo]].
- "Zombieland: Double Tap (2019) - Financial Information".
- Kaufman, Amy. (August 11, 2011). "Movie Projector: 'Apes' likely to swing higher than 'The Help'". Los Angeles Times.
- "30 Minutes or Less (2011)". Box Office Mojo.
- FilmL.A.. (March 1, 2014). "2013 Feature Film Study".
- "Gangster Squad (2013)".
- "Venom (2018)".
- "The Mule (2018)". [[Box Office Mojo]].
- (September 26, 2019). "Box Office: 'Maleficent: Mistress of Evil' Eyes $50 Million Launch". [[Variety (magazine).
- Nikki Finke. (January 13, 2013). "#1 'Zero Dark Thirty' Widens For $24M, 'Haunted House' Beats Disappointing 'Gangster Squad' For #2; 'Silver Linings', 'Lincoln', 'Life Of Pi' Get Oscar Bumps".
- "Zombieland: Double Tap (2019) - Financial Information".
- "Venom: Let There Be Carnage (2021)".
- "Uncharted".
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