Ruben Samuel Fleischer (/ˈflaɪʃər/; born October 31, 1974) is an American film director, film producer, television producer, music video director, and commercial director who lives in Montclair, New Jersey. 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, which features the same Marvel Comics character. Before the features, he directed television commercials for brands like Cisco, Eurostar, ESPN, and Burger King and music videos for artists such as M.I.A., Electric Six, DJ Format and Gold Chains. Fleischer was born and raised in Washington, D.C, the son of Karen Lee (née Samuel) and David Elliot Fleischer, 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 history major from Wesleyan University, Fleischer moved to San Francisco, where he worked as a freelance HTML programmer, unsure what he wanted to do with his life. 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. He eventually turned to directing and worked his way through the industry, tackling music videos and television commercials before landing his first feature film, Zombieland, in 2009. His second feature, 30 Minutes or Less, opened in theaters on August 12, 2011. 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 the 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 3. Description above from the Wikipedia article Ruben Fleischer, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
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Biography from TMDB.
- October 31, 1974 (51)
- Washington, D.C., USA
- Director, producer and writer
- 28 on MovieCove · 37 credits in all
What are Ruben Fleischer's films like?
Across their 15 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Bonds and Self.
Genres
Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.
Themes
What they feel like to watch
Ironic 1 · Wry 2 · Earnest 8
Light 10 · Serious 1 · Dark 0
A split, not a type: Grounded 4 · Stylized 2 · Heightened 5
Gentle 3 · Charged 4 · Intense 4
Steady 4 · Shifting 6 · Whiplash 1
Straight-faced 1 · Some laughs 5 · Funny 5
A split, not a type: Slow burn 2 · Even-paced 3 · Relentless 6
Casual 7 · Engaged 4 · Full focus 0
Easy watch 10 · Affecting 1 · Heavy 0
Resolved 11 · Open-ended 0 · Ambiguous 0
Moods and endings
- Happy10
- Bittersweet3
- Ambiguous2
AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.
Where can I watch Ruben Fleischer's films?
As of October 24, 2026, 26 of their 28 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service.
Subscription and free streaming for Ruben Fleischer's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.
Filmography
37 credits, 28 with a MovieCove page.
Little Brother(2026)
Midcredits score: 22nd percentile of all films
Midcredits score: 39th percentile of all films
Motorheads(2025)
Midcredits score: 86th percentile of all shows
St. Denis Medical(2024)
Midcredits score: 59th percentile of all shows
White House Plumbers(2023)
Midcredits score: 36th percentile of all shows
Jury Duty Presents(2023)
Midcredits score: 88th percentile of all shows
Uncharted(2022)
Midcredits score: 53rd percentile of all films
Midcredits score: 38th percentile of all films
Bad Trip(2021)
Midcredits score: 61st percentile of all films
Bhaag Beanie Bhaag(2020)
Midcredits score: 12th percentile of all shows
Zombieland: Double Tap(2019)
Midcredits score: 66th percentile of all films
Stumptown(2019)
Midcredits score: 75th percentile of all shows
The Mule(2018)
Midcredits score: 83rd percentile of all films
Venom(2018)
Midcredits score: 65th percentile of all films
Brad's Status(2017)
Midcredits score: 61st percentile of all films
Unicorn Store(2017)
Midcredits score: 33rd percentile of all films
The Bold Type(2017)
Midcredits score: 85th percentile of all shows
Santa Clarita Diet(2017)
Midcredits score: 82nd percentile of all shows
American Housewife(2016)
Midcredits score: 74th percentile of all shows
Superstore(2015)
Midcredits score: 85th percentile of all shows
Marry Me(2014)
Midcredits score: 21st percentile of all shows
Two Night Stand(2014)
Midcredits score: 52nd percentile of all films
A Way In (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2014)
Gangster Squad(2013)
Midcredits score: 61st percentile of all films
30 Minutes or Less(2011)
Midcredits score: 36th percentile of all films
Funny or Die Presents...(2010)
Midcredits score: 6th percentile of all shows
Zombieland(2009)
Midcredits score: 93rd percentile of all films
Midcredits score: 79th percentile of all shows
Rob & Big(2006)
Midcredits score: 74th percentile of all shows
Gumball 3000: 6 Days in May (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2005)
The Girls Guitar Club (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2001)
The Hitman (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1996)
Protecting Jared (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)
The 47 Night Stand (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)
The Sun Always Sets in the West (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)
Untitled Now You See Me 4 (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)
Wild Ones (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)
Career shape
A full career of 36 titles, 31 of them dated from 1996 to 2026.
Biggest box office
Venom (2018)
Highest rated
Zombieland (2009)
Most popular right now
Zombieland: Double Tap (2019)
Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.
Awards
3 major nominations and no wins, 2023–2024.
- Producers Guild Award, nominated · Outstanding Producer of Episodic Television, Comedy
- Independent Spirit Award, nominated · Best New Scripted Series
- Primetime Emmy, nominated · Outstanding Comedy Series
Major bodies only: the Oscars, Primetime Emmys, Golden Globes, BAFTAs and Screen Actors Guild Awards are named; Cannes, Venice, the Berlinale, Sundance, the directors', writers' and producers' guilds, the Grammys, Critics Choice and the Independent Spirit Awards count as other major bodies. Festival and regional prizes are not counted. Source: IMDb.
How do Ruben Fleischer's films land?
Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 57th percentile, the median of all 14; across their 11 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 50th percentile for acclaim.
- 75th and up9
- 50th to 74th10
- 25th to 49th5
- Below 25th4
Shape of the crowd
17 of their 28 titles are Crowd Pleasers.
- Universally Loved2
- Divisive1
- Crowd Pleaser17
- Broadly Agreed5
- Mixed3
Reviewers score the atmosphere 57/100 and the pacing 55/100 in their films, across 11 reviewed titles. The element that speaks to their work as a director.
Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.
Is Ruben Fleischer's work okay for kids?
Across up to 13 MovieCove titles with content scores, profanity runs heavier than most films.
Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted. The band's colour is the severity of their median, named beside it.
Who does Ruben Fleischer work with?
People who share at least 2 of Ruben Fleischer's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; David Bernad shares the most, 7.
Writers
- Paul WernickShared titles: Now You See Me: Now You Don't (2025), Zombieland: Double Tap (2019), Zombieland (2009)See all 3 shared titles with Paul Wernick
- Rhett ReeseShared titles: Now You See Me: Now You Don't (2025), Zombieland: Double Tap (2019), Zombieland (2009)See all 3 shared titles with Rhett Reese
Actors
- Jesse EisenbergShared titles: Now You See Me: Now You Don't (2025), Zombieland: Double Tap (2019), 30 Minutes or Less (2011), Zombieland (2009)See all 4 shared titles with Jesse Eisenberg
- Woody HarrelsonShared titles: Now You See Me: Now You Don't (2025), Zombieland: Double Tap (2019), Venom (2018), Zombieland (2009)See all 4 shared titles with Woody Harrelson
- Emma StoneShared titles: Zombieland: Double Tap (2019), Gangster Squad (2013), Zombieland (2009)See all 3 shared titles with Emma Stone
- Eric AndréShared titles: Little Brother (2026), Bad Trip (2021)See all 2 shared titles with Eric André
Composers, cinematographers and editors
- Alan BaumgartenShared titles: Venom (2018), Gangster Squad (2013), 30 Minutes or Less (2011), Zombieland (2009)See all 4 shared titles with Alan Baumgarten
- Ludwig GöranssonShared titles: Bad Trip (2021), Venom (2018), 30 Minutes or Less (2011)See all 3 shared titles with Ludwig Göransson
- Mary DeChambresShared titles: Jury Duty Presents (2023), Rob & Big (2006)See all 2 shared titles with Mary DeChambres
- Chung-hoon ChungShared titles: Uncharted (2022), Zombieland: Double Tap (2019)See all 2 shared titles with Chung-hoon Chung
Producers
- David BernadShared titles: Little Brother (2026), Jury Duty Presents (2023), Uncharted (2022), Bad Trip (2021), Bhaag Beanie Bhaag (2020), Zombieland: Double Tap (2019), Unicorn Store (2017)See all 7 shared titles with David Bernad
- Elias GertlerShared titles: Jury Duty Presents (2023), Bad Trip (2021)See all 2 shared titles with Elias Gertler
- Avi AradShared titles: Uncharted (2022), Venom (2018)See all 2 shared titles with Avi Arad
- Jeff TremaineShared titles: Bad Trip (2021), Rob & Big (2006)See all 2 shared titles with Jeff Tremaine
