NEW YORK — Morgan Spurlock, an Oscar-nominated documentary filmmaker whose most well-known works ridiculed America’s food business and who famously ate solely McDonald’s for a month to demonstrate the perils of a fast-food diet, died. He was 53.
Spurlock died Thursday in New York from cancer complications, according to a statement released by his family on Friday.
“It was a sad day, as we said goodbye to my brother Morgan,” Craig Spurlock, who collaborated with him on multiple projects, said in the statement. “Morgan contributed so much with his paintings, ideas, and compassion. The world has lost a great creative talent and a unique individual. I’m really proud to have worked with him.”
Documentary Filmmaker Morgan Spurlock, Who Skewered Fast Food Industry, Dies At 53
Spurlock made a big sensation 2004 with his innovative picture “Super Size Me,” which was nominated for an Academy Award. The film documented Spurlock’s negative physical and psychological repercussions after consuming exclusively McDonald’s cuisine for 30 days. He gained roughly 25 pounds, had an increase in his cholesterol, and lost his sexual drive.
“Everything’s bigger in America,” he stated in the film. “We’ve got the biggest cars, the biggest houses, the biggest companies, the biggest food, and finally: the biggest people.”
Spurlock quickly showed the kids a photo of George Washington, but none of them recognized the founding father. They did, however, recognize the Wendy’s and McDonald’s mascots immediately.
The video generated more than $22 million on a $65,000 budget and came out before Eric Schlosser’s influential “Fast Food Nation,” which accused the business of being harmful to the environment and riddled with labor difficulties.
Spurlock returned in 2017 with “Super Size Me 2: Holy Chicken!“, a sobering look at an industry that produces 9 billion animals annually in the United States. He focused on two issues: poultry farmers trapped in an unusual financial system and fast-food restaurants’ attempts to trick customers into thinking they’re eating healthier.
“We’re at an amazing moment in history from a consumer standpoint where consumers are starting to have more and more power,” he told The Associated Press in 2019. “It is not about shareholder returns. It is about consumer return.”
Documentary Filmmaker Morgan Spurlock, Who Skewered Fast Food Industry, Dies At 53
Spurlock was a gonzo filmmaker who embraced the odd and ludicrous. His artistic additions included catchy visuals and funny music, which combined a Michael Moore-esque camera-in-your-face manner with his sense of humor and sorrow.
“I wanted to be able to lean into difficult situations. I wanted to be able to take a deep breath during happy occasions. We want to give you permission to laugh in places when it’s difficult to laugh,” he told the Associated Press.
After he exposed the fast-food and poultry industries, there was a surge in restaurants that emphasized freshness, artisanal processes, farm-to-table quality, and ethically obtained products. However, there was little difference in terms of nutrition.
“There has been a big transformation, and people ask me, ‘So, has the food gotten healthier?’ And I respond, ‘Well, the marketing sure has,'” he added.
Not all of his efforts involved food. Spurlock created documentaries about the boy band One Direction and the geeks and fanboys at Comic-Con. One of his videos examined life behind prison at Virginia’s Henrico County Jail.
With 2008’s “Where in the World is Osama Bin Laden?” Spurlock embarked on a global search for the al-Qaida commander, who was slain in 2011. Spurlock’s “POM Wonderful Presents: The Greatest Movie Ever Sold” delves into product placement, marketing, and advertising.
“I believe that being aware is half the battle. “Knowing all the time when you’re being marketed to is fantastic,” Spurlock told the AP then. “Many people don’t realize it. They can’t see the forest through the trees.”
“Super Size Me 2: Holy Chicken!” was supposed to premiere at the Sundance Film Festival in 2017, but it was pulled in the height of the #MeToo movement when Spurlock came forth to detail his history of sexual misconduct.
He admitted that he had been accused of rape in college and had resolved a sexual harassment case with a female aide. He also admits to cheating on multiple partners. “I am part of the problem,” he stated.
Documentary Filmmaker Morgan Spurlock, Who Skewered Fast Food Industry, Dies At 53
“For me, there was a moment of awareness — as a truth-teller and someone who has made it a point to try to do the right thing — that I could do better in my own life. “We should be able to admit we were wrong,” he told the Associated Press
Spurlock grew up in Beckley, West Virginia. His mother was an English teacher who, he recalls, corrected his work with a red pen. In 1993, he earned a BFA in film from New York University.
He leaves behind two children, Laken and Kallen, as well as his mother, Phyllis Spurlock, father, Ben, brothers Craig and Barry, and the mothers of his children, Alexandra Jamieson and Sara Bernstein, who were both his ex-wives.
SOURCE – (AP)
