Ruben Doblas Gundersen, better known as Rubius, stands as one of the most influential figures in online culture. With tens of millions of followers across YouTube, Twitter, Instagram, and Twitch, his journey has shaped the modern era of digital entertainment. A recent Amazon Prime Video documentary revisits his rise, focusing on the intense final years of his peak influence and offering a candid look at the person behind the memes. The film, titled Ruby X, is set to debut on Friday, July 22, and promises an in-depth portrait of a groundbreaking creator.
In this film, Rubius embarks on a retrospective journey into his own past. Born in Mijas, Malaga, in 1990, he spent formative years in Ankara and later in Bergen, Norway. The documentary follows him back to these places as he shares memories with his mother, including stories from a summer when he worked as an assistant on Norwegian trams to fund a 3D animation course. Even as a socially awkward young adult, he sensed a calling toward audiovisual storytelling, though he could not have imagined that the videos filmed in a small room would someday bring him global fame and financial success.
Viewers learn about his first earnings from YouTube subscriptions, a moment his family initially mistook for a pyramid scheme. Those were early days for online entertainment, a time when the entire industry seemed to be bursting with potential. The film underscores how a handful of young creators, armed with nothing more than curiosity and a camera, helped catalyze a new form of media and, in the process, reshape many people’s lives.
Andorra, anxiety and threats
The documentary also features friends and fellow creators who remember the early days of collaboration and camaraderie. Rubius’s circle, including colleagues who later joined him in shared living spaces while streaming, recounts the moment they realized content could be monetized. They reflect on how being among the first to turn online video into a business carried both admiration and scrutiny, and how management, including Irene Civico, played a pivotal role in guiding their careers.
Contemporary tensions around fame are explored in depth. The film covers a controversial chapter when Rubius chose to relocate to Andorra to optimize taxes, a move that echoed the decisions of other successful creators. It also documents the darker side of online fame, including threats directed at Rubius’s partner during a period of heightened scrutiny. The documentary does not shy away from the stress and anxiety that accompany rapid visibility, highlighting how even a thriving public life can be emotionally taxing.
Today, Rubius remains a dominant presence across major platforms, with a sprawling online footprint that includes a storefront selling an anime-inspired series, a unique video game character, and his own apparel line. He has also ventured into high-profile collaborations, sharing the screen with popular actors and continuing to influence the broader ecosystem of digital entertainment.