About Us
Brian Grodzki
THE DIRECT Co-Founder
Brian is the co-founder, chief executive officer and editor-in-chief of The Direct. He has been creating content for online fan communities while fostering their growth since 2013. Brian attended Lehigh University, which is where he met The Direct's co-founder, Jack, and graduated from the school with a Civil Engineering degree in 2019. He has an extreme passion for creating and facilitating the creation of all forms of online content that enriches people's lives.
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John McBryan
THE DIRECT Co-Founder and CTO
Jack is the Co-Founder of The Direct, starting the company with Brian in September of 2019. He is the CTO of the The Direct, focused on building the thedirect.com. He graduated from Lehigh University in 2019 with a degree in computer science. Jack is a huge fan of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, starting his journey with Iron Man and has seen every movie since Iron Man 2 in theaters. Despite this love of the MCU, Jack has not read many Marvel comics. Jack is an avid reader, with his favorite book series being The Wheel of Time, Mistborn, and The Stormlight Archives.
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Aeron Mer Eclarinal
MCU and STAR WARS Writer
Aeron is a news and features writer for The Direct who also has a stint in writing pieces for MCU Exchange. His passion for the superhero genre began from watching Tobey Maguire's Spider-Man, but it wasn't until learning the inter-connectivity of the Marvel Cinematic Universe through The Avengers that led him to religiously read all things superhero from several media sites to study the genre. He recently started co-hosting a podcast for MCU Exchange. When he isn't writing and watching all things MCU, Aeron is heavily invested with the NBA as well as other franchises such as DC and Star Wars.
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Aeron Mer Eclarinal
Aeron is a news and features writer for The Direct who also has a stint in writing pieces for MCU Exchange. His passion for the superhero genre began from watching Tobey Maguire's Spider-Man, but it wasn't until learning the inter-connectivity of the Marvel Cinematic Universe through The Avengers that led him to religiously read all things superhero from several media sites to study the genre. He recently started co-hosting a podcast for MCU Exchange. When he isn't writing and watching all things MCU, Aeron is heavily invested with the NBA as well as other franchises such as DC and Star Wars.
Alycia Leach
PLAYSTATION Writer
Alycia is a 21 year old writer from the United Kingdom, and has a lifelong love for Video Games.
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Andrew Gilman
STAR WARS Writer
Andrew is a writer for The Direct who has an immense passion for Star Wars. Currently a college student at the University of Central Florida, he studies Human Communication and dreams of writing and directing a Star Wars trilogy of his own one day. When he’s not lost in the Galaxy Far, Far Away, Andrew can be found cheering on the New England Patriots and Tampa Bay Rays.
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Ben Osborne
THE DIRECT Content Lead and Managing Editor
Ben is a Content Lead and Managing Editor for the Direct, who joined the company in May of 2019. His role consists of creating images for The Direct, as well as posting on the respective social media channels, and overseeing and coordinating The Direct's editorial activities.
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Benny Stein
PLAYSTATION Writer
Benny is a writer for The Direct, having just joined the team in November of 2020. He is also a student at Wesleyan University, working towards a Bachelor of Arts in Film Studies. Passionate about all things film and media related, Benny hopes to consider both (as well as other related subjects) through his work at The Direct.
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Caitlin Cook
MCU and STAR WARS Writer
Caitlin is a writer for The Direct, joining the team in March 2020. She graduated from Duke University in 2011 with a Bachelor of Science in Psychology, and in 2016 from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte with a Master of Arts in Clinical/Community Psychology. Caitlin currently works as a college instructor. She has had a lifelong passion for writing, which she one day hopes to turn into a career. Caitlin has loved all things Marvel and Star Wars since she was a kid, and is excited for the opportunity to combine so many passions into one!
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David Coulson
None
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David Thompson
PLAYSTATION, MCU, and STAR WARS Writer
David is a writer for The Direct, joining the team in November 2020. He recently graduated from the Florida Institute of Technology where he studied Multiplatform Journalism. David is a writer, podcaster, director, and sports junkie.
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Elliott Gembler
THE DIRECT Content Lead
Elliott is a Content Lead for The Direct, and joined the company in May of 2019. He lives in London, United Kingdom and works full-time in the social media industry. He specialises in social media management and graphic design, with his role at The Direct consisting of both as well as overseeing a wide range of content output across all channels. He graduated from university with a Football Business and Media degree and has an ever-lasting passion for various sports, especially football. He is also the Founder and Content Lead at utdreport, a Manchester United based social network.
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Evan Clark
XBOX Writer
Evan covers video games as a writer for The Direct. As a graduate of Grand Valley State University with a Bachelor of Science in Public Relations, he has worked with the media in the past and is now trying his hand at being a part of the media.
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Jack Martin
PLAYSTATION Writer
Jack loves covering video games. He studied journalism and communication at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, and he has co-hosted several podcasts with his friends on the Joy Clicks YouTube channel.
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Jack Pues
STAR WARS Writer
Jack is a writer for The Direct who was born and raised in Jacksonville, Florida. He currently attends the University of North Florida and plans to graduate with a Bachelor's degree in Economics and minor in Political Science. Although he has no past experience in the writing/content creation field, he is a passionate Star Wars fan and hopes to illustrate this in his articles. He is a dedicated cinephile and sports fan. After years of expanding his creative abilities through hobbies like tap dancing and exploring new films, he is eager to gain new experience working with The Direct.
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John Ross Bradford
MCU Writer
John Ross Bradford is a writer for The Direct who is very passionate about all things Marvel. Growing up right as the Marvel Cinematic Universe was first being established created an opportunity for him to grow alongside it, and he still enjoys every piece of it that made the MCU what it is today. John Ross loves to follow the most intricate details that Marvel Studios hides within their work, and analyzing the potential that they hold for the MCU. He also enjoys sharing his passion with his friends, which he does through a small Facebook fanpage for Marvel that he maintains in his free time.
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Joshua Morgan
XBOX Writer
Josh is currently studying Business and Media at UCFB in Manchester, United Kingdom. Massive video games fan ever since the PS2 era. Josh has always had a passion for writing and publishing his own work online, and the opportunity to mix both of these hobbies inspired him to become a writer for The Direct.
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Julia Delbel
Julia hails from the Greater Toronto Area in Canada and is a news and features writer for the MCU branch of The Direct. She is currently pursuing a degree in Media Studies and in addition to Marvel loves Disney, DC, TV, theater, and more.
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Kevin Grodzki
THE DIRECT Content Creator
Kevin is a content creator for The Direct who currently studies Economics and Political Science at Bucknell University. Kevin hopes to preserve The Direct's reputation through the creation of unique content for its website and social media outlets. While he has a fondness for MCU and Stars Wars entertainment, Kevin's love for video games can not be surpassed. He has a special love for Nintendo, with "Super Mario 64", "Mario Party" (1-7ish), and "The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild" as some of his favorite games.
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Klein Felt
PLAYSTATION Writer
Klein is a gaming writer for The Direct based in Western Canada. He has a background in media with most of his experience coming in the radio industry. While Klein feels most comfortable with a controller in hand, he also loves spending his time consuming podcasts, taking in a movie, or watching as much NBA basketball as possible.
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Lauren Rouse
STAR WARS Writer
Lauren is a writer for The Direct in Sydney, Australia. She has worked in film, television and streaming and has a Masters degree in screenwriting, (she is also available to write the next Star Wars movie just FYI). Lauren is a fan of all things pop culture and can often be found at theme parks, playing video games, watching too many TV shows or lining up overnight at San Diego Comic-Con.
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Liam Crowley
MCU Writer
Liam Crowley is an MCU Writer for The Direct who studies broadcast and digital journalism at Syracuse University. There, he works as the Entertainment Director for his campus television station, CitrusTV, while also holding on-air positions as an entertainment host, reporter, and news anchor. Outside of the MCU, Liam loves movies like Step Brothers and The Wolf of Wall Street. In his free time, Liam loves to listen to his favorite artists, The Weeknd and Juice WRLD, while also maintaining diehard fandoms for professional wrestling and his beloved Boston sports teams.
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Liam McDonough
MCU and STAR WARS Writer
Liam is a writer for The Direct who deeply enjoys writing, especially about things that he's passionate about. His non-MCU and Star Wars interests include action figures, sitcoms, and making the perfect peanut butter and banana sandwich.
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Matt Roembke
MCU and Star Wars Writer & Content Creator
Matt is a writer and content creator for The Direct who has 10+ years of storytelling experience. Matt has a self-proclaimed “unhealthy obsession” with all things Marvel, Star Wars, Sports and Entertainment. If you engage him in conversation about any of those topics, prepare for an earful. He graduated from Ball State University with degrees in both Visual Communication and Social Media Promotion.
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Pamela Gores
MCU Writer & Assistant Editor
Pamela is an MCU writer and Assistant Editor for The Direct who recently earned her bachelor's in Writing & Rhetoric with a minor in Creative Writing from the University of Central Florida in Orlando, FL. She is now working full-time as a Program Advisory Committee (PAC) Coordinator at Full Sail University. She’s written and edited for multiple publications and hopes to use her skills as an editor for a magazine or publishing company one day. When she isn’t typing on her laptop, you can find her listening to The 1975 on Spotify or playing Kingdom Hearts.
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Pete Hernandez
MCU, STAR WARS, and DCU Writer
Pete is a writer for The Direct, versed in Digital Marketing by day and a human Marvel/Star Wars/Sports encyclopedia by night. He’s written for sites like FanSided and discovered his passion for writing via his roots as a fan of the Golden State Warriors, Sacramento Kings, and Oakland* Raiders. When not writing, he’s developing his photography skills, reading a great page-turner, or exploring more of New York City (home of his namesake Peter Parker).
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Pierre Chanliau
MCU Writer
Pierre Chanliau is a news and feature writer for the MCU branch of The Direct. They previously worked as an editor and writer for MCUExchange for nearly two years. They’re currently pursuing a career in the video game industry as a producer or narrative designer, but in the meantime, they're getting paid to write about superheroes.
In their spare time they like to watch Michael Schur shows on repeat, while writing fiction no one will publish.
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Richard Nebens
MCU, STAR WARS, and DCU Writer
Richard Nebens is a writer for all three divisions of The Direct, specializing in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and all of its happenings. He lives in South Lake Tahoe, California, owns a restaurant, and loves playing video games, watching movies, spending time with his wife Malari, and cheering on his professional LA sports teams. (Go Lakers, Dodgers, Rams, and Kings!) Richard has loved the MCU since its inception in 2008, he started writing with MCUExchange in summer 2019 before joining The Direct in 2020, and he is so excited to be a part of the CBM/movie news world for a long time!
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Russ Milheim
Playstation Writer
Russ Milheim is based out of Atlanta GA, and gaming is one of his core passions in life. That certainly isn’t his only passion though—you can add Television, Movies, Marvel, Comics, Superheroes, and the Horror genre to the long list of things that fuel him. If Pop culture is involved, you can expect him to be a part of it.
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Ryan Eder
MCU Writer
Ryan is a writer for The Direct and a current History major at Lake Forest College with a background primarily in academic writing. His love for the Marvel Cinematic Universe is rivaled only by the love he has for sports and his family. Ryan has been a fan of the MCU since its humble beginnings in 2008 and loves what it represents as both an iconic franchise and as a way for people all across the world to be connected through its unparalleled storytelling.
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Sam Hargrave
PLAYSTATION Writer
19 year old Computer Science student, Sam, has been playing games his whole life going back to the days of the Nintendo Wii. Sam has spent years as a gaming and Call of Duty YouTuber/streamer on his channel, Scorpiolo, so it's safe to say that's his area of expertise!
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Savannah Sanders
STAR WARS Writer
Savannah is a writer for The Direct from Goreville, Illinois. Savannah has worked as a freelance writer for various entertainment and travel websites, such as ScreenRant and the TouringPlans Blog, and teaches high school history and government. When she's not wrangling teenagers, Savannah enjoys studying film and politics and planning her next trip to a Disney theme park.
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Tom Drew
MCU, STAR WARS and DCU Writer
Tom is a writer for The Direct who has previously co-hosted a self-described “extremely popular and awesome” film review segment on BBC Radio Berkshire and makes the occasional video compulsively dissecting new film releases. He also really likes Spider-Man. When he’s not scouring the web for hot scoops, Tom enjoys illustrating, hunting down brick-based deals and catching Pokémon.
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Trey Tobias
MCU Writer
Trey is a writer for The Direct who recently graduated from college with a film and television degree, focusing in screenwriting. It was the MCU that largely inspired him to pursue writing, with Trey hoping to one day write a film as perfect as Avengers: Infinity War. For now, he can be found rewatching The Avengers, and writing articles for The Direct.
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