Joe Russo

JOE RUSSO (Directors-Producers) has been absorbing classic movies since growing up in Cleveland in the 1970s. Standing by their belief that strong teamwork brings stratospheric results, the Russo’s contribution to worldwide moviegoing mixes storytelling craft, filmmaking skill, and a deep understanding of how great characters can connect us all. It’s a philosophy that can be felt in their debut feature, Welcome to Collinwood (2002), and underscores their work on TV’s critically-acclaimed Arrested Development (for which they won an Emmy for Outstanding Directing of a Comedy Series), Community, and Happy Endings — all of which the Russos directed the pilot episodes as well as numerous beloved signature episodes.

Through a quartet of movies within the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the Joe raised the bar for blockbuster filmmaking in artistry, scope, and box office: Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014), Captain America: Civil War (2016), Avengers: Infinity War (2018), and Avengers: Endgame (2019), which, in addition to concluding the “Avengers saga,” racked up numerous industry records, including Biggest Single-Day Gross, Highest-Grossing Opening Weekend, and Highest-Grossing Film of All Time.

In early 2018, Joe, along with his brother, Anthony, announced the formation of their studio, AGBO, an energetic, artist-led collective focusing on creating global content for film, television, and digital platforms. Headquartered in downtown Los Angeles, AGBO aims to nurture talent and create best-in-class family and prestige content, with the goal of working in a wide gamut of genres and bringing original ideas to the screen. Among the company’s first films were 21 Bridges, starring Chadwick Boseman; Extraction, starring Chris Hemsworth, which broke records for Netflix as the biggest premiere in the platform’s history with over 100 million views during its first month of release; Sundance acquisition horror thriller Relic (IFC Midnight), starring Emily Mortimer; Middle East-set drama Mosul (Netflix); and Cherry (Apple TV+), starring Tom Holland and Ciara Bravo.

The pandemic did not slow the Russo Brothers down. The brothers wrapped production on The Gray Man (starring Ryan Gosling and Chris Evans), one of Netflix’s biggest productions to-date. The team also started production on arguably the most ambitious TV universe creation ever, Priyanka Chopra’s Citadel (Amazon); and they are currently shooting Extraction 2, starring Chris Hemsworth.