Josh Becker (filmmaker)
American filmmaker (1958–2025)
Josh Becker
Becker, during the filming of Alien Apocalypse
Born
Joshua Matthew Becker

(1958-08-17)August 17, 1958
Detroit, Michigan, U.S.
DiedDecember 5, 2025(2025-12-05) (aged 67)
OccupationsFilm and television director and writer
Years active1981–2025
Websitehttp://www.beckerfilms.com/

Joshua Matthew Becker (August 17, 1958 – December 5, 2025) was an American film and television writer and director and author whose credits included episodes of Xena: Warrior Princess, as well as collaborations with Bruce Campbell and Sam Raimi.[1]

Life and career

Early life and education

Josh Becker was born in Detroit, Michigan, on August 17, 1958. He became fascinated with cinema after seeing How the West Was Won at age six. As a teenager, he made several Super-8 short films with Sam Raimi and Bruce Campbell.[2][3][4] He dropped out of high-school at age 16 and completed his GED, then attended several colleges (including Michigan State University), but did not complete his studies. At the age of 17, he moved to Los Angeles, where he worked several mid-to-low level jobs while trying to enter the film industry. He also hitchhiked to Alaska during his period (inspired by the writer Jack London), and recounted his adventures in Alaska Journal, and his later memoir, Going Hollywood.

Film and television career

Becker worked as a production assistant and sound recordist on The Evil Dead (1981), which he later referred to as the most grueling film shoot he'd ever been on. He later made his first feature film, Stryker's War (later retitled Thou Shall Not Kill...Except), at age 25, which co-starred Sam Raimi, after spending several years trying to raise funds for it. Bruce Campbell was originally set to star in the film, and starred in the 45-minute Super-8 demo version of the film, but had to bow out due to Screen Actors Guild union regulations. His second film, Lunatics: A Love Story, was produced and released in 1991, and starred Ted Raimi and Deborah Foreman.[5][6][7][8] He also worked as a production assistant during this period, including on one of Mariah Carey's first music videos.[9]

He later directed episodes of several television shows, including Real Stories of the Highway Patrol. He directed the TV film Hercules in the Maze of the Minotaur, which led to a directing gig on Xena: Warrior Princess that he had for several years. He also directed the black-and-white film Running Time with Bruce Campbell, which was edited to look as if it was filmed in a single continuous shot.[10][11]

In 1999, Becker wrote, produced, and directed the independent film If I Had A Hammer, about the 1960s folk rock scene.[12][13] Becker later directed the two Sci-Fi Channel films Alien Apocalypse (based on his screenplay)[14][15][16] and Stan Lee's Harpies.[17][18]

In 2013 Becker produced the YouTube web series Spine Chillers, directing several episodes.[19] In 2018 Becker returned to feature filmmaking with Morning, Noon, and Night[20] In 2020 he followed with another feature, the western Warpath starring Thom Matthews and Ted Raimi.[21]

Death

Becker died on December 5, 2025, at the age of 67.[1][22]

Writing

Becker authored The Complete Guide to Low-Budget Feature Filmmaking detailing the ins and outs of independent filmmaking from his own experience. Bruce Campbell penned the introduction.

His second book, Rushes, a collection of essays previously available on his website, was published in 2008.

His third book, Going Hollywood, which details his time in Hollywood upon first arriving in 1976, and his adventures in Alaska, was released in 2010.[23]

In 2014 Becker attempted crowdfunding publishing his series of historical fiction novels. One of them, Mann's Revenge, was published as an e-book on Amazon.[24]

Becker published a number of essays on his website about the film business and film history, as well as a number of film reviews, which are notable for their acidity and brutal honesty. He frequently bemoaned the current state of cinema and Hollywood, which he saw as purely being motivated by money (instead of artistic and creative intentions) and geared towards the lowest common denominator. He was also an avid fan of classic cinema and the Golden Age of Hollywood, and wrote that he considers The Bridge on the River Kwai to be the best film ever made.[25]

He also reviewed old western films for True West Magazine.[26]

Essays

  • Smoking Cigarettes (1996)
  • The Need for Structure, Part I (1997)
  • The Need for Structure, Part II: We Are Our Own Worst Enemies (1997)
  • Reduced Expectations (1997)
  • 99-Cent Stores (1998)
  • Verisimilitude (1998)
  • Genius in Film (1998)
  • Truth & Lies (1998)
  • Stories & Society ("Pleasantville" and "Enemy of the State") (1998)
  • Turner Classic Movies: A Blessing on My House (1998)
  • The Need for Structure, Part III: Action Movies (1999)
  • Stevie the Cat (1999)
  • The Need for Structure, Part IV: The Rejection of Older Forms (2000)
  • The Need for Structure, Part V: Irony & Theme (2000)
  • America: Land of the Stupid Cowboys (2000)
  • Reading Books (2000)
  • Monsterization (2000)
  • The Intentions of Storytelling (2000)
  • My History of Writing Machines (2000)
  • A Lesser Form (2001)
  • Bailing Out on Los Angeles (2001)
  • My Patriotic "Orientation" (2003)
  • Religion is Evil (2003)
  • The Misuse of Presidential Power (2003)
  • Dogma 2006: Facing the Post-Star Wars Era (2005)
  • Hollywood Movie Studios (2005)
  • Bulgarian Impressions (2006)
  • Conservatism (2007)
  • "Victory" in Iraq is Pure Garbage (2008)
  • Religious Freedom (2010)
  • The Making of "Intent" (2007, rev. 2011)

Selected film and television credits

Year Film Director Producer Writer Other Notes
1981 The Evil Dead Lighting and effects
Torro! Torro! Torro! Yes Short film
1982 Cleveland Smith: Bounty Hunter Yes Yes Cinematographer and editor
1985 Thou Shalt Not Kill... Except Yes Yes
1991 Lunatics: A Love Story Yes Yes
1993 Real Stories of the Highway Patrol Yes Television series
1994 Hercules in the Maze of the Minotaur Yes Television film
1995 Mosquito Actor
1996–2001 Xena: Warrior Princess Yes Yes Television series
Directed 9 episodes
Wrote 2 episodes
1997 Running Time Yes Yes Yes
1999 If I Had a Hammer Yes Yes
2000 Jack of All Trades Yes Television series
2 episodes
2005 Alien Apocalypse Yes Yes Television film
2007 Stan Lee's Harpies Yes
2008 Intent Yes Unreleased
2013–2014 Spine Chillers Yes Yes Yes Web series
Directed 3 episodes
Wrote 3 episodes
Actor (1 episode)
2018 Morning, Noon, and Night Yes Yes Yes
2020 Warpath Yes Yes Yes

Bibliography

  • Josh Becker (February 2006). The Complete Guide to Low-budget Feature Filmmaking. ISBN 0-8095-5690-1.
  • Becker, Josh (2008-05-15). Rushes. p. 276.

References

  1. ^ a b DiVincenzo, Alex (8 December 2025). "Filmmaker, 'Evil Dead' Crew Member Josh Becker Has Passed Away". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved 9 December 2025.
  2. ^ Danna, Corey (2025-12-18). "Remembering Filmmaker Josh Becker: Thou Shalt Not Forget". HorrorGeekLife. Retrieved 2026-01-05.
  3. ^ "Rob's Nostalgia Projects - The Super-8 Short Films DVD Boxset". www.bookofthedead.ws. Retrieved 2026-01-05.
  4. ^ "BRUCE CAMPBELL AND SAM RAIMI: 1970s and 1980s SHORT FILMS – CLEVELAND SMITH AND MORE". Balladeer's Blog. 2025-01-17. Retrieved 2026-01-05.
  5. ^ "MOVIE REVIEW : 'Lunatics': High Imagination, Low Budget". Los Angeles Times. 1992-02-21. Retrieved 2026-01-05.
  6. ^ Baumgarten, Marjorie (1992-05-29). "Lunatics: A Love Story". The Austin Chronicle. Retrieved 2026-01-05.
  7. ^ "Lunatics: A Love Story (1991)". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved 2026-01-05.
  8. ^ "LUNATICS: A LOVE STORY". STARBURST Magazine. Retrieved 2026-01-05.
  9. ^ Becker, Josh (2024-11-09). "The Crack of Dawn #680". Josh’s Newsletter. Retrieved 2026-01-05.
  10. ^ MooCow, The (2021-10-25). "Episode 88: Lunatics: A love Story (1991)". The Indie Film Cafe Movie Reviews!. Retrieved 2026-01-05.
  11. ^ "Lunatics: A Love Story (1991)". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved 2026-01-05.
  12. ^ "Meet the Makers: Josh Becker". We Are Movie Geeks. 2008-06-15. Retrieved 2026-01-05.
  13. ^ "Writer/Producer/Director Josh Becker Presents 'If I Had a Hammer' at the Laemmle Music Hall 3". www.newswire.com. Retrieved 2026-01-05.
  14. ^ "DVD Talk". www.dvdtalk.com. Retrieved 2026-01-05.
  15. ^ Jr, E. C. McMullen. "Alien Apocalypse movie review by E.C.McMullen Jr". Feo Amante's Horror Thriller. Retrieved 2026-01-05.
  16. ^ Syp (2023-11-15). "Alien Apocalypse (2005) — Hail to the President, baby". Mutant Reviewers. Retrieved 2026-01-05.
  17. ^ Staff, Dread Central (2007-06-24). "Harpies (2007)". Dread Central. Retrieved 2026-01-05.
  18. ^ McFarlin, Jim (2007-05-02). "What's wrong with this picture?". Detroit Metro Times. Retrieved 2026-01-05.
  19. ^ Spine Chillers
  20. ^ "Auditions & Casting Notices". Archived from the original on 2013-11-03.
  21. ^ Hamman, Cody (2025-12-08). "Filmmaker, writer, and The Evil Dead crew member Josh Becker has passed away". JoBlo. Retrieved 2026-01-05.
  22. ^ Hamman, Cody (8 December 2025). "Filmmaker, writer, and The Evil Dead crew member Josh Becker has passed away". JoBlo. Retrieved 9 December 2025.
  23. ^ http://beckerfilms.com/ Retrieved 2010-02-14.
  24. ^ Mann's Revenge
  25. ^ "Essays Archives". Becker Films. Retrieved 2026-01-05.
  26. ^ "Josh Becker". True West Magazine. Archived from the original on 2025-10-05. Retrieved 2026-01-05.
  • Josh Becker at IMDb
  • Beckerfilms.com
  • Josh Becker discography at Discogs
Interviews
  • Exclusive Josh Becker Interview at Deadites Online
  • Audio interview with Becker[permanent dead link]
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