Award-winning British filmmaker Michael Apted has died.
The Hollywood Reporter confirmed Apted's death via Roy Ashton at the Gersh Agency. A spokesperson for the Directors Guild of America said Apted died Thursday night in Los Angeles (DGA), but no further details have been released.
The visionary behind the camera for films like Coal Miner’s Daughter, The World Is Not Enough, Gorillas in the Mist, and Gorky Park, was 79.
His credits also include long-running soap opera Coronation Street, historical drama series Rome, Chasing Mavericks, Masters of Sex, and the acclaimed documentary series 7 Up, which chronicled the lives of 14 British children every seven years from ages seven to 63.
Apted was a multiple BAFTA Awards and Directors Guild of America Awards winner, but he was never even nominated for an Oscar.
Paying tribute to Apted on Friday, Thomas Schlamme, the president of the DGA, called the Brit "a fearless visionary".
"He saw the trajectory of things when others didn't and we were all beneficiaries of his wisdom and lifelong dedication," Schlamme said.