Ghostbusters director Ivan Reitman has died at 75 years of age. Reitman’s family told the Associated Press that he died peacefully in his sleep at his Montecito home. The family released a joint statement saying, “Our family is grieving the unexpected loss of a husband, father, and grandfather who taught us to always seek the magic in life. We take comfort that his work as a filmmaker brought laughter and happiness to countless others around the world. While we mourn privately, we hope those who knew him through his films will remember him always.” Reitman’s cause of death has not been disclosed.
According to Variety, Reitman was born in Czechoslovakia and raised in Canada. It was there that he met up-and-coming young comics, including Rick Moranis and Dan Aykroyd. His big break came when he produced the 1978 frat comedy film National Lampoon’s Animal House. He then moved into directing, kicking his directorial career off with Meatballs (1979) and Stripes (1980), both of which starred Bill Murray. Reitman would work with Murray again when he directed his smash hit Ghostbusters (1984), which also starred Aykroyd and Moranis along with Harold Ramis and Sigourney Weaver. The film was a major success, pulling in nearly $229 million and spawning Ghostbusters II (1989). Last year, a second sequel was released entitled Ghostbusters: Afterlife, which was directed by Reitman’s son Jason.
Along with Ghostbusters, Director Ivan Reitman’s other directorial credits include Kindergarten Cop, Father’s Day, My Super Ex-Girlfriend, Evolution, and Six Days, Seven Nights. Some of his producer credits include Space Jam, Up in the Air, Private Parts, and the poorly-received Ghostbusters reboot from 2016.
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