Screenwriter John Lafia has passed away at the age of 63.
It has been reported that he committed suicide in his home in Los Angeles, California, on April 29, 2020. However, nothing else is known concerning the circumstances of his death.
He leaves behind his ex-wife Beverly and two children, Tess and Kane.
Lafia wrote and directed for a diversity of different theatrical film and television projects over the years. He started out as a set dresser for the 1983 space-western film Space Raiders and continued to work as a leadman for Repo Man, which was released a year later.
Lafia directed The Blue Iguana in 1988, a crime film he wrote himself. He would also direct and write the horror-comedy film Man’s Best Friend years later in 1993.
But Lafia was perhaps best known for his work on the Child’s Play movie series. In the first film, Lafia played a pivotal role in rewriting the script to make Andy Barclay a more sympathetic character. Critics praised the character for being able to create an “emotional connection” with the audience. Child’s Play would go on to become one of the most iconic movies of all time and be a hit among film critics and audiences alike.
Lafia would go on to direct the sequel, Child’s Play 2, which was released in 1990. The sequel was considered to be inferior primarily to the first film by critics but was enough of a hit among audiences to warrant a threequel one year later in 1991
The franchise would continue for years in the form of the Cult of Chucky movies before a reboot of Child’s Play hit the silver screen in 2019.
He also directed two episodes of the Freddy Kreuger spin-off Freddy’s Nightmares. What are your fond memories of Child’s Play? Did you enjoy the film and its sequel? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
