Jeethu Joseph | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Jeethu Joseph in 2021 | |
| Born | (1972-11-10)10 November 1972 (age 53) Muvattupuzha,Kerala, India |
| Alma mater | |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 2007–present |
| Spouse | Linta Jeethu |
| Children | 2 |
Jeethu Joseph (born 10 November 1972) is an Indian film director, screenwriter, and producer who predominantly works inMalayalam cinema.[1] He has also worked in a fewTamil,Hindi andTelugu films. He made his directional debut with the 2007 suspense thrillerDetective. He is best known for directing the 2013 crime thrillerDrishyam starringMohanlal, which was the highest-grossing Malayalam film at the time of its release.[2][3] Its sequelDrishyam 2 (2021) was released onAmazon Prime Video, due to theCOVID-19 pandemic. Like its prequel, it was highly acclaimed and appreciated worldwide.
His other works includeMummy & Me (2010),My Boss (2012),[4]Memories (2013),[5]Life of Josutty (2015),Oozham (2016),Aadhi (2018),Neru (2023),Nunakkuzhi (2024), andMirage (2025). Jeethu made hisTamil debut withPapanasam (2015), a remake of his 2013 filmDrishyam,[6][7]Hindi debut withThe Body (2019),[8] andTelugu debut withDrushyam 2 (2021), a remake ofDrishyam 2.
Jeethu Joseph was born inMutholapuram,Muvattupuzha,Kerala, India to Leelamma and V. Joseph, a formerMLA of Muvattupuzha.[9] He wanted to attend theFilm and Television Institute of India (FTII), although his father wanted him to become an engineer. He attended Fathima Matha English Medium School and completed his pre-degree fromSB College Changanassery and later graduated with aBachelor of Economics fromNirmala College, Muvattupuzha.[10]
Jeethu Joseph started his career as an assistant director toJayaraj. He got a chance to direct a film starringDileep however it failed to materialize.[10] Meanwhile, Jeethu developed the one-line plot ofDetective. Ater failing to find a producer, his mother Leelamma Joseph offered to co-produce the film, which became his directorial debut. A month into the project, a producer took interest and agreed to produce the film.Detective was released in 2007. The film fared well at the box-office.[10]
His next film, the comedy-dramaMummy & Me was a box-office success.Mummy and Me, although it took close to three years in the making, marked a turning point in his career as director. "My first film was easy compared to the struggle I had to go through for my second,Mummy and Me." There were offers to make films likeDetective, but Jeethu declined. "I wanted to do a different film" It was for this reason that, though he had one line scripts ofMummy and Me andMemories ready in 2008, he chose to makeMummy and Me.[10] His third filmMy Boss starringDileep was also a commercial success. His fourth film, the slasher thrillerMemories starringPrithviraj Sukumaran was released in 2013 and performed well at the box-office.
In 2013, he directed the crime thrillerDrishyam starringMohanlal, which was critically and commercially acclaimed. It was the highest-grossing Malayalam film, until 2016, and the first Malayalam film to cross the₹50 crore mark at the box-office.[3][10][11]Drishyam has been remade into four regional languages includingTamil,Telugu,Hindi, andKannada, as well as internationally inSinhalese andMandarin Chinese.[11] In 2015, he directedLife of Josutty starring Dileep andPapanasam, the Tamil remake ofDrishyam starringKamal Haasan. His next directorial,Oozham (2016), starring Prithviraj was a commercial success. In 2018, he directed the action-thrillerAadhi which marked the acting of debut ofPranav Mohanlal.Aadhi received positive reviews from critics and was a commercial success at the box-office.
In 2021, he directedDrishyam 2, the sequel to his 2013 filmDrishyam which released onAmazon Prime Video. Like its prequel, it was critically acclaimed by critics.[12] The third instalment in the franchiseDrishyam 3 will release in 2026.[13]
Jeethu married Linta and they have two children, Cathy and Katina. Linta is a costume designer who has worked in several of his films.
| Year | Title | Credited as | Language | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Director | Screenwriter | Producer | ||||
| 2007 | Detective | Yes | Yes | No | Malayalam | |
| 2010 | Mummy & Me | Yes | Yes | No | ||
| 2012 | My Boss | Yes | Yes | No | ||
| 2013 | Memories | Yes | Yes | No | ||
| Drishyam | Yes | Yes | No | |||
| 2015 | Papanasam | Yes | No | Yes | Tamil | Remake ofDrishyam |
| Life of Josutty | Yes | No | No | Malayalam | ||
| 2016 | Oozham | Yes | Yes | No | ||
| 2017 | Lakshyam | No | Yes | Yes | ||
| 2018 | Aadhi | Yes | Yes | No | ||
| 2019 | Mr. & Ms. Rowdy | Yes | Yes | Yes | Co-written with Linta Jeethu[14] | |
| The Body | Yes | Yes | No | Hindi | ||
| Thambi | Yes | Screenplay | No | Tamil | ||
| 2021 | Drishyam 2 | Yes | Yes | No | Malayalam | |
| Drushyam 2 | Yes | Yes | No | Telugu | Remake ofDrishyam 2 | |
| 2022 | Antakshari | No | No | Presenter | Malayalam | SonyLIV release |
| 12th Man | Yes | No | No | Disney+ Hotstar release; voiceover for Merin's brother | ||
| Kooman | Yes | No | No | |||
| 2023 | Neru | Yes | Yes | No | Co-written withSanthi Mayadevi | |
| 2024 | Level Cross | No | No | Presenter | [15] | |
| Nunakkuzhi | Yes | No | No | [16] | ||
| 2025 | Mirage | Yes | Yes | No | Co-written with Srinivasan Abrol and Aparna R. Tarakad[17] | |
| 2026 | Vallathu Vashathe Kallan | Yes | No | No | [18] | |
| Drishyam 3† | Yes | Yes | No | [13][19] | ||
| Dridam† | No | No | Presenter | [20] | ||
| Untitled Fahadh Faasil Project† | Yes | No | No | [21] | ||
| TBA | Ram† | Yes | Yes | No | ||
| Year | Award | Category | Film | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 44th Kerala State Film Awards | Best Popular Film | Drishyam | Won | |
| Vanitha Film Awards | Best Director | Won | [22][23] | ||
| Kerala Film Critics Association Awards | Best Director | Won | [24][25] | ||
| Jaihind TV Film Awards | Best Director | Won | |||
| South Indian International Movie Awards | Best Director | Won | |||
| 2016 | 63rd Filmfare Awards South | Best Director | Papanasam | Nominated | |
| 2022 | 67th Filmfare Awards South | Best Director | Drishyam 2 | Nominated | |
| South Indian International Movie Awards | Best Director | Nominated | |||
| 2025 | South Indian International Movie Awards | Best Director | Neru | Nominated | |
| Filmfare Awards South | Best Director | Nominated |