Over the last 25 years, Anthony Russo and Joe Russo, Academy Award-winning producers of the 2023 Best Picture, Everything Everywhere All at Once, have been responsible for some of the most successful and culturally relevant global content. With over 7 billion dollars in world-wide box office, three films (Extraction 1 & 2, & The Gray Man) in the top 10 of all time viewing at Netflix and the second-most watched show in history at Amazon (“Citadel”), respectively, the Russo’s continue to bring entertainment to the largest audience.

Through a quartet of movies within the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the Russos raised the bar for blockbuster filmmaking in artistry, scope, and box office returns. The team set records with Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014; worldwide gross of 714.4mm), Captain America: Civil War (2016; worldwide gross of 1.2bn), Avengers: Infinity War (2018; worldwide gross of 2.1bn), and Avengers: Endgame (2019; worldwide gross of 2.8bn); along with concluding the Avengers saga, the films racked up numerous industry bests, including Biggest Single-Day Gross, Highest-Grossing Opening Weekend, and Highest-Grossing Film of All Time. The Russos have now returned to the MCU to direct with their company, AGBO, to produce the highly anticipated Avengers: Doomsday & Avengers: Secret Wars, continuing their legacy within the franchise.

The Russos have always believed that teamwork brings stratospheric results. So, perhaps it’s no surprise that they partner with luminaries like screenwriters Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely, the industry’s top below-the-line and FX crews, and the most extraordinary roster of actors ever assembled. Rejecting the label of “auteurs,” the Russos subscribe to the “collective theory,” noting that collaboration is crucial. It’s a philosophy that can be felt in their debut feature, Welcome to Collinwood, and underscores their work on TV’s multiple Emmy award-winning and critically acclaimed “Arrested Development” (for which they won the Emmy for Outstanding Directing of a Comedy Series), as well as the ground-breaking comedies “Community” and “Happy Endings” (for which the Russos directed the pilot episodes as well as numerous beloved signature episodes).

In 2017 the Russo Brothers were pleased to announce the formation of their artist- led independent film and TV studio, AGBO. Through AGBO, the Russo Brothers have produced 21 Bridges, Mosul, Relic, Extraction 1 & 2, “Citadel” and Everything Everywhere All At Once. They directed Cherry which was released on Apple TV in 2021 and The Gray Man which was Netflix's #1 movie of the year and #4 most-watched movie of all time.  The Russo Brothers recently released The Electric State on Netflix, their latest directorial project starring Millie Bobby Brown and Chris Pratt. 

In addition to their film and television successes, the Russos are also co-founders of Magnetic Field, a filmmakers’ collective and creative studio that is centered on the creation of brand-integrated entertainment and advertising content, and which utilizes state-of-the-art technology to break down barriers between advertisers and audiences.

In 2022, AGBO announced a significant investment of money and resources from South Korean gaming giant Nexon. The deal will see a major inflow of cash for development and production, as well as an intellectual property-sharing agreement that can result in games made from AGBO films and films made from Nexon games. “We’re futurists,” say the Russos. “We love new technology. We love the energy that it brings to our process, the possibilities that it creates for how we communicate with audiences.” 

Donald Mustard

Session

Building Artistic Universes Without Borders