Joel David Moore

Joel David Moore isn’t just that guy you sorta recognize from every other comedy in the mid-2000s—though, yeah, he crushed it in Dodgeball and Grandma’s Boy. He’s the dude who somehow leapt from cult comedies straight into James Cameron’s billion-dollar Avatar universe, which, let’s be real, is not exactly a small career glow-up. He’s got this wild filmography—over 50 credits, by the way—and he just keeps churning out new stuff, whether it’s action, drama, or whatever The Baker and Retirement Plan are serving up, plus he’s back for the next round of Avatar sequels. Guy never sleeps. But acting? That’s just one lane. Moore’s been busy behind the camera, too. He kicked off his directing career with Spiral—definitely not your average thriller, more like a mind-bender that actually got critics talking. Since then, he’s helmed Youth in Oregon (think road trip, but darker), rebooted Hide and Seek, and recently dropped Some Other Woman, which is more psycho-drama than your therapist would recommend. In 2019, he co-launched Balcony 9 Productions, and honestly, they’re everywhere: from the indie mind trip Immaculate Room to the gritty Desperation Road, and soon, a Rebel Wilson action-comedy called Bride Hard. Oh, and they’re working with Gus Van Sant on Dead Man’s Wire, so yeah, no big deal. Off-set, Moore’s got a heart. He’s on the board at Dollar For, fighting medical debt, and he’s knee-deep in sustainability work, even trekking to both poles to see climate change in action. Mostly, though, he’s about keeping it real—balancing the Hollywood hustle with time for his wife, Katherine, and their two kids.