Los Angeles — Jon Landau, an Oscar-winning producer who collaborated closely with director James Cameron on three of the most successful blockbusters of all time, “Titanic” and two “Avatar” films, died. He was 63.
Landau’s family announced his death on Saturday. No cause of death was specified.
Landau’s collaboration with Cameron resulted in three Oscar nominations and a best picture win for 1997’s “Titanic.” Together, the two have produced some of the most successful films in history, including “Avatar” and its sequel, “Avatar: The Way of Water.”
Jon Landau, Oscar-Winning ‘Titanic’ And ‘Avatar’ Producer, Dies At 63
In a statement, Cameron mourned “a dear friend, and my closest collaborator of 31 years.” “A part of myself has been torn away,” Cameron said.
“His zany humor, personal magnetism, great generosity of spirit and fierce will have held the center of our Avatar universe for almost two decades,” he remarked. “His legacy is not just the films he produced, but the personal example he set — indomitable, caring, inclusive, tireless, insightful and utterly unique.”
Landau began his career as a production manager in the 1980s and worked his way up the ranks, eventually becoming a co-producer on “Honey I Shrunk the Kids” and “Dick Tracy.”
He became the producer of Cameron’s pricey epic on the notorious 1912 maritime disaster, “Titanic.” The wager paid off: “Titanic” became the first film to gross over $1 billion at the global box office and won 11 Oscars, including Best Picture.
“I can’t act and I can’t compose and I can’t do visual effects, so I guess that’s why I’m producing.” Landau said this when accepting the medal alongside Cameron.
Their collaboration continued, with Landau becoming a senior executive at Cameron’s Lightstorm Entertainment. In 2009, the couple witnessed “Avatar,” a sci-fi epic recorded and exhibited in theaters using breakthrough 3D technology, outperform the box-office triumph of “Titanic.” It remains the highest-grossing film of all time.
The sequel, “Avatar: The Way of Water,” ranks third.
“Your wisdom and support shaped so many of us in ways we will always be grateful for,” Zoe Saldaña, one of the stars of the “Avatar” franchise, wrote in an emotional tribute on Instagram. “Your legacy will continue to inspire us and guide us in our journey.”
Landau was a crucial figure in the “Avatar” franchise, which experienced repeated delays in publishing “The Way of Water.” Landau supported the sequel’s progress and Cameron’s ambitious ambitions to film numerous sequels simultaneously to keep the franchise going.
“A lot has changed, but a lot hasn’t,” Landau told The Associated Press in 2022, just months before the sequel’s debut. “One thing that has yet to change is why people turn to entertainment nowadays. They do it to escape, much like they did with the first ‘Avatar’ film.
“Jon was a visionary whose remarkable talent and passion brought some of cinema’s most memorable stories to life. His outstanding contributions to the film industry have left an unforgettable impression, and he will be much missed. In a statement, Disney Entertainment co-chairman Alan Bergman said, “He was an iconic and successful producer, but he was also an even better person and a true force of nature who inspired everyone around him.”
When he was 29, Landau was made executive vice president of feature films at 20th Century Fox, where he oversaw huge hits such as “Home Alone” and its sequel, as well as “Mrs. Doubtfire” and “True Lies,” where he first collaborated with Cameron.
Landau also helped bring the manga adaptation Alita: Battle Angel to the big screen in 2019. Cameron backed the project, but his “Avatar” commitments prevented him from directing it. Instead, Landau collaborated with filmmaker Robert Rodriguez to complete the picture.
Jon Landau, Oscar-Winning ‘Titanic’ And ‘Avatar’ Producer, Dies At 63
Landau was born in New York on July 23, 1960, the son of film producers Ely and Edie Landau. The family relocated to Los Angeles in the 1970s, and Landau graduated from the University of Southern California’s film school.
Ely Landau died in 1993. Edie Landau, an Oscar-nominated producer of films like “Long Day’s Journey Into Night,” “Hopscotch,” and “The Deadly Game,” died in 2022.
Jon Landau is survived by his wife, Julie, who is nearly 40 years old; their two boys, Jamie and Jodie; and two sisters and one brother.
SOURCE – (AP)
