(PatriotsUnited.org) – Highly successful and legendary Oscar-winning producer Jon Landau has died. He was 63.
While the exact cause of death is still unknown, a representative from Disney announced that he passed away on Friday following a courageous 16-month fight with cancer.
Tina, Landau’s sister, confirmed his passing on social media.
In addition to producing a string of critical and blockbuster successes, Landau is also noted for his roles in three of the highest-grossing films of all time: Titanic, Avatar, and its sequel, The Way of the Water.
Hollywood rumors had long held that the film adaptation of Titanic would fail, much like the ship itself. But it won eleven Oscars, including Best Film, and earned $2.2 billion, turning Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet into superstars. Landau famously thanked forty-five individuals in a hurried acceptance speech at the Oscars.
Tributes from people who knew and worked with Landau began pouring in by Sunday, including James Cameron, who paid tribute to his late friend and business colleague.
In the 1980s, Jon Landau began his career in the film industry working as a production manager. Films like Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, and Dick Tracy were among his credits before he met Cameron. Cameron claims they first crossed paths in 1993 when Landau was “the studio suit’ assigned to monitor True Lies. He said they learned to appreciate and enjoy one another amidst the production’s logistical nightmare.
After Cameron lured Landau away from Fox, the two collaborated on Titanic. Landau helped Cameron achieve cinematic history with the drama, which became the first picture to surpass $1 billion worldwide.
Landau, the son of film and television executive Ely Landau and actress Edythe (who collaborated with Sidney Lumet and John Frankenheimer), was born in New York City in 1960.
While attending a handprint ceremony outside of Los Angeles’s TCL Chinese Theater to commemorate the premiere of “Avatar: The Way of Water,” Landau spoke about how his parents encouraged him to pursue a career in film from an early age.
Julie, Landau’s wife of nearly 40 years, and their sons Jamie and Jodie are his surviving relatives. His siblings Tina, Kathy, and Les Landau also survive him.
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