Tony Scott, Director Of 'Top Gun,' Dies In Apparent Suicide

[BITTER]

RIP
Poor guy. I can't even imagine the sort of anguish and despair someone has to be in to do something like this.

I feel like watching true romance and the hunger again. Those were always my favorites out of all his films.

He must have been in a panic thinking about having a terminal illness like that. Poor guy. What a waste. And how awful for his kids.

[stef]

'Top Gun' Director Tony Scott Had Inoperable Brain Cancer - ABC News

Tony Scott, director of "Top Gun," "Days of Thunder" and "Crimson Tide," had inoperable brain cancer, a source close to him told ABC News.

that's horrible.

Several years back we had an elderly couple that were our neighbors for years, they were the BEST neighbors. You know what I mean....like the kind from years ago that keep an eye out for you, offer you vegetables from their garden, etc. Well, the husband was a very strong, hard-working man his whole life. He found out in October that he had liver cancer, he was already around 80 years old. He committed suicide, in his bathroom, with a gunshot to his chest. He thought it out very meticulously and explained it in his note. The gunshot to the chest was so his wife could give him an open casket if she wanted to, the timing of doing it in October was so everything could be done with before the holidays. Really devestated our family losing such a great neighbor/friend, but he went out on his terms. He didn't want his wife watching him suffer, and her trying to care for him. He didn't want sympathy. They had a grown daughter, so the wife sold the house & moved in with the daughter.

So in retrospect, it sounds like Tony Scott did the same thing (notes to family, etc), except it was a very public suicide. So tragic, since Tony has younger kids.

so sad.

Well if this country would wake the fuck up and make assisted suicide legal, horrible shit like this wouldn't happen.

it actually is in oregon (there's a great but sad documentary about it called "how to die in oregon"), you get some sort of cocktail that you can take whenever wherever you want.
but i agree, it's sad that people have to jump off bridges or travel to switzerland to be able to go at the time they want to.

[cherrypye]

Don't blame him one bit.

Damn, this is so sad.

[Seth82]

ok this is getting weird.

Tony Scott Suicide -- NO Brain Cancer | TMZ.com

TONY SCOTT SUICIDE
NO BRAIN CANCER



Tony Scott did NOT have inoperable brain cancer, or for that matter brain cancer at all ... this according to Scott's family.

TMZ has learned ... Scott's wife told investigators the rumor that Tony had inoperable brain cancer is "absolutely false."

Although the autopsy results have been deferred pending more tests, our sources say there is no evidence of brain cancer.

What's more ... we're told Scott's wife says Tony did not have any other severe medical issues that would have caused him to take his own life.

[angelais]

It is so very sad. Cancer blows. Poor guy just didn't want to suffer.

[Laurent]

Ok, wait, so no brain cancer and no medical issues according to the wife, then? So, major depression, I guess?

[Merlot-N-Bali]

Maybe his wife didn't know.

[Laurent]

Maybe his wife didn't know.

Maybe, but if she didn't know, it's hard for me to believe that anyone other than his physicians would know or be in a position to tell. And apparently the rumor started before an autopsy had been performed, so I wouldn't think it leaked out of the medical examiner's office because they wouldn't have been able to know yet.

[lizzybabe]

Sad, sad, sad. Now his family is saying he didn't have brain cancer?

His family must be going through hell right now.

[huntsy_2000]

I want my tin hat. I wonder what the cos bots were doing.

[shellywelly]

I want my tin hat. I wonder what the cos bots were doing.

This is exactly what I was thinking when I read the stars of the movies listed were Cruise, Will Smith and Travolta!!

My tin foil hat is on.

[angelais]

Okay I am breaking out the extra.heavy duty tin foil hat. Maybe the Co$bots started he brain cancer rumor. I wouldn't put it past them.

[DeadDwarf]

Maybe he just wanted out, sometimes there is no terminal illness. My great uncle in law (never married, no kids) killed himself with no warning at all, no suicide letter either, yet he planned it for months and saw lawyers to draft up his papers to divide stuff. Hung himself at his house and made sure a friend could find him right after. My husband's family, strict Catholics, wanted to believe he had a terminal illness to explain his suicide. But maybe it was because he was 76, maybe it was because he had some unknown depression or maybe he just said, "Fuck it, I lived long enough!" and decided to end it. None of us will ever know.

At least Tony Scott left some letters for his loved ones, maybe that could help them come to terms with his decision.

[Beeyotch]

I found it weird that on the news (ok the news segment on Art Bell, shutup) they said they just completed the autopsy--it seems awfully fast, he only jumped yesterday. I wonder if 1) it's true and 2) whether they rushed the autopsy because this got so much press.

[Mrs P]

Family say Tony Scott did NOT have inoperable brain cancer... so what drove him to jump from a Los Angeles bridge?

• Picture taken in Beverly Hills on July 23 shows Scott looking pained
• Taken just weeks before he jumped 'without hesitation' from the Vincent Thomas Bridge as horrified tourists on a harbour cruise watched
  
• A suicide note was later recovered at his office
• Industry veteran famous for cult classic Top Gun along with Days of Thunder, Beverly Hills Cop II and Enemy Of The State
• Planning a Top Gun sequel with Tom Cruise; prep work had already started
  
• Had twin sons with third wife he met in 1994

By Louise Boyle, Michael Zennie and Lydia Warren
PUBLISHED: 20:02 EST, 20 August 2012 | UPDATED: 01:13 EST, 21 August 2012

Director Tony Scott did not have inoperable brain cancer -- despite initial reports a terminal diagnosis was what drove him to commit suicide from a bridge in Los Angeles, his family told authorities the day after his death.

The 68-year-old blockbuster movie director, perhaps best known for 'Top Gun,' was said to have leaped to his death 'without hesitation' in an effort to spare his family the pain of watching his slow death, ABC News reported. Hours later, ABC backed away from that report.

The Los Angeles Times confirmed that Scott's family told the corner's office Scott did not have cancer -- or any major illness.

'The family told us it is incorrect that he has inoperable brain cancer,' Craig Harvey, a chief at the Los Angeles County Coroner's Office told the newspaper.

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Disheveled: Director Tony Scott has died after leaping off a bridge in Los Angeles. Scott, who had brain cancer, was pictured looking pained as he dined out in Beverly Hills on July 23
TMZ were the first to report that Scott's wife Donna told authorities her husband was healthy, according to unnamed sources.

Donna Scott told investigators that rumors of a return of her husband's cancer was 'absolutely false,' TMZ says.
The celebrity news site also claims the preliminary results of an autopsy did not reveal the presence of cancer -- though more tests are needed.

The revelation, if proven true, begs the question -- what could have driven the successful director, whose films have grossed more than $2billion, to kill himself?




His older brother, Sir Ridley Scott, is flying from London to Los Angeles to be with Tony's family.
Tony Scott's tragic death comes just weeks after he was pictured looking pained as he left a Beverly Hills restaurant on July 23.
Scott had been in hospital earlier this summer and told friends it was for a hip operation. But they knew he had previously kicked cancer and some believe it had come back.

Tragic: Los Angeles polie officers pulled the body of Tony Scott from the water beneath the Vincent Thomas Bridge in San Pedro, California

'He has been suffering from cancer and he had a relapse,' a source told the New York Post. 'He wasn’t depressed, he was a lovely guy. On Sundays everyone went to his house, there would be the guy who worked in his local restaurant sitting by the pool by Michael Caine.'
Another source added: 'He did have cancer, and for a while he was cancer free. He didn’t have any money problems or marriage problems.'
The beloved filmmaker, who directed movies including Top Gun, Beverly Hills Cop II and Enemy Of The State and was the younger brother of director Ridley Scott, fell within feet of a cruise boat around 12.30 p.m. on Sunday as horrified tourists watched.
'He landed right next to our tour boat, and many of us saw the whole thing,' a witness, who had been on the cruise around the Los Angeles Harbour, told TMZ.

Hollywood tragedy: Film director Tony Scott, 68, has committed suicide by jumping from a bridge in LA



Marriage: Tony Scott with his third wife Donna whom he married in 1994
According to theContra Costa Times, Scott climbed a fence on the south side of the bridge, which spans San Pedro and Terminal Island, at 12.30 p.m. on Sunday and leaped off 'without hesitation'.
TONY SCOTT'S PAINFUL DIAGNOSIS


Tony Scott reportedly committed suicide after learning he had inoperable brain cancer - a disease that would have caused him a great deal of suffering.
'Brain cancer' is an umbrella term for a range of diseases, the prognoses of which are different depending on the brain tissue affected and speed at which it is developing.

Brain cancer can be caused by brain cells themselves or when cancer spreads from another part of the body. Cancer cells grow to form a mass of cancer tissue - a tumour - that interferes with brain functions.

Symptoms vary widely but can include weakness, seizures, headaches, nausea and blurry vision. A sufferer's mental capacity, memory, speech and personality can also be affected.
Treatments include surgery, radiotherapy and/or chemotherapy. Without treatment, death can occur within a short time span, but complete recovery does not often occur.

The cancer develops in around 22,000 people in the U.S. each year, and about 13,000 people die each year, according to the National Cancer Institute.



Several people called 911 around 12.35pm to report that someone had jumped off the bridge, according to Los Angeles police Lt. Tim Nordquist. Police are interviewing witnesses.
A dive team with Los Angeles Port Police pulled the body from the murky water around 3pm. It was taken to a dock in Wilmington and turned over to the county coroner's office.
Investigators found a note in Scott's black Toyota Prius, which was parked on the bridge, according to the Los Angeles Times.
The note listed names and contact numbers - including that of his wife - so police could call his friends to tell them of his death, TMZ reported.

A suicide note was later found at his office but, while it is said to have been much more detailed than the note in his car, its contents were not revealed.
Simon Halls, a publicist who represents the Scott brothers, confirmed the death. 'The family asks for privacy during this time,' Halls said.
The Los Angeles County Coroner's Office said an autopsy is planned and results could be expected as early as this afternoon.
The sudden death shook Hollywood and film fans as the successful director apparently had everything to live for.
He leaves behind twin sons and his wife Donna, a model and actress who had appeared in some of his films.
He was also in the early stages of developing a sequel to cult classic movie Top Gun with Tom Cruise and producer Jerry Bruckheimer. It was set for release in 2014, the L.A. Times reported.

Mixing with the A-list: Tony Scott and Tom Cruise on the set of Days Of Thunder in the 1980s
In mourning: Tom Cruise was spotted looking dishevelled as he left restaurant Madeos hours after Tony Scott's suicide. The two men were reportedly working on a Top Gun sequel





TONY SCOTT'S FILMOGRAPHY

• The Hunger (1983) - His debut starred Catherine Deneuve and David Bowie as vampires. It was a commercial flop but became a cult classic
• Top Gun (1986) - Tom Cruise, Kelly McGillis, and Val Kilmer turned this film into the highest-grossing of the year, $354million, and a pop-culture classic.
• Beverly Hills Cop II (1987) - This Eddie Murphy film was the most highly-anticipated film of the year
• Revenge (1990) – Scott left the action genre to work with Kevin Costner in this adultery thriller. It was a flop
• Days of Thunder (1990) – Cruise returned for a film about the danger of NASCAR racing. Nicole Kidman and Robert Duvall played major roles
• The Last Boy Scout (1991) - Bruce Willis starred in this big-budget action film that under-performed at the box office
• True Romance (1993) – Ironically, this was Scott most critically-acclaimed film but also one of his biggest commercial flops
• Crimson Tide (1995) – Another success for Scott in this thriller starring Gene Hackman and Denzel Washington
• The Fan (1996) – Robert De Niro and Wesley Snipes star in a psychological thriller about fanatical baseball fans
• Enemy of the State (1998) – Will Smith played opposite Gene Hackman in a big-budget spy thriller
• Spy Game (2001) – More glowing reviews for another Scott spy thriller, this one starring Robert Redford and Brad Pitt
• Man on Fire (2004) – Denzel Washington as a CIA operative bent on revenge after his young charge is kidnapped in Mexico
• Domino (2005) – Keira Knightley stars as a bounty hunter in LA. Panned by critics
• Déjà Vu (2006) – A science fiction thriller starring Denzel Washington
• The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3 (2009) – Denzel Washington and John Travolta play opposite each other in this terrorism-related thriller.
• Unstoppable (2010) – Scott again turned to Denzel. The critics enjoyed it and the public too spending $168million

On Friday, Cruise toured a naval Air Station near Fallon, Nevada, as part of prep work for the movie which, if it enjoys the same success of the first film, could be one of the biggest box office hits of the decade.
The actor is said to be crushed at news of the death, calling Scott 'a creative visionary whose mark on film is immeasurable', according to TMZ.
He added: 'Tony was my dear friend and I will really miss him ... My deepest sorrow and thoughts are with his family at this time.'

Scott, who ran Scott Free Productions with his brother, was also working on a movie called Killing Lincoln, based on the bestseller by Bill O'Reilly, and has a film starring Christian Bale out next year.
Scott was highly respected in the industry working on blockbusters with the creme of the A-list including Tom Cruise, Brad Pitt, Will Smith, Denzel Washington and John Travolta.
Tony was the first of the Scott brothers to enjoy blockbuster success with Top Gun, the top-grossing film of 1986 at $176 million.
The film, which also starred Kelly McGillis and Val Kilmer, was nominated for four Academy Awards and won the best song award for Take My Breath Away.

Scott teamed with Cruise again four years later on the hit Days of Thunder, and had the sequel to Top Gun in development.
Last year, Cruise, who was propelled to fame with the original film, told MTV: 'I said to Tony, I want to make another movie with him.
'We all want to make a film that is in the same kind of tone as the other one and shoot it in the same way as we shot Top Gun.'

It had been rumoured that Cruise's character would return as an instructor for a new class of recruits - but the actor said they were 'still working on it'.

Scott had also recently completed filming Out of the Furnace, a drama starring Christian Bale which is set to come out next year.
Scott was an avid rock climber and liked driving fast cars and motorcycles - but admitted that filmmaking was his real thrill.

'The biggest edge I live on is directing,' Scott said in an interview for his 1995 naval adventure Crimson Tide. 'That’s the most scary, dangerous thing you can do in your life.
'The scariest thing in my life is the first morning of production on all my movies. It’s the fear of failing, the loss of face and a sense of guilt that everybody puts their faith in you and not coming through.'
Tributes started to pour in for the celebrated director who made his last film Unstoppable in 2010, starring Denzel Washington and Chris Pine.
Director Ron Howard tweeted: 'No more Tony Scott movies. Tragic day.'
Documentary-maker Morgan Spurlock wrote: 'RIP Tony Scott - so sad to hear this.'

'Tony Scott. Damn. Great knowing you, buddy," added Sin City director Robert Rodriguez. 'Thanks for the inspiration, advice, encouragement, and the decades of great entertainment.'
Cult classic: Director Tony Scott gives instructions to Tom Cruise on the set of Top Gun


Family life: Director Tony Scott with his wife and sons at the premiere of The Taking Of Pelham 123 in 2009



Creative force: Tony Scott (left) with his elder brother Ridley at awards ceremony in Los Angeles two years ago
Loved: Scott, pictured at the premiere of Unstoppable in 2010, often wore the same red baseball cap

Val Kilmer, who also starred in Top Gun, wrote: 'RIP Tony. You were the kindest film director I ever worked for. You will be missed.'
'Tony Scott as a friend and a mentor was irreplaceable. Tone, wherever you are, I love you man. RIP,' director and producer Joe Carnahan said on Twitter.

Carnahan added that when his movie The Grey was finished, Scott called him to tell him he had seen it. He told Carnahan not to allow anybody to change anything in it.
'Tony always sent personal, handwritten notes & always drew a cartoon caricature of himself, smoking a cigar, with his hat colored in red,' Carnahan said.
Richard Kelly, who wrote the screenplay for Domino which Scott directed, added his condolences.
'Working with Tony Scott was like a glorious road trip to Vegas on desert back roads, a wild man behind the wheel, grinning,' the Donnie Darko director wrote. 'I felt safe.'
He added: 'Tony Scott was the best mentor - when he saw something punk rock that he could slip through the system ... he pounced.'
Investigation: The 68-year-old movie director jumped to his death on Sunday afternoon

Jump: Scott climbed the bridge which spans Los Angeles Harbor and plunged 185 feet to his death
His family has not yet spoken out about the sudden death. He met his wife Donna in 1994, after two unsuccessful marriages. She gave birth to twins Max and Frank in 2000.
Anthony Scott was born in 1944 in North Shields, England.

His first appearance on screen came at age 16 in Boy And Bicycle, a film directed by brother Ridley, who is six years older.
He attended Grangefield School, West Hartlepool College of Art and Sunderland Art School and earned a degree from the Royal College of Art.
Tony followed in his brother's footsteps, lured by the success of his older brother's production company Ridley Scott Associates (RSA) - and his promise of a new Ferrari.
He first directed TV commercials before breaking into the American movie industry and enjoying amazing success with Top Gun, which became a cult classic.


Friends: Scott and Denzel Washington during the filming of Man on Fire, which was released in 2004



Happier times: They also worked on The Taking of Pelham 123, which was released in 2009







Popular: Scott poses with actor Mickey Rourke, left, and actress Lucy Liu, right


Producers Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer reportedly picked Tony to direct the film on the strength of one Saab commercial he directed that featured a Swedish fighter jet.
He went on to direct 15 more feature films, many of them successes, though he never again captured the sales or cult following of Top Gun and critics often slammed his movies for style over substance.
He told the BBC in 2005: 'I stopped looking at reviews after my first movie The Hunger, because I got slagged off so badly. They can be brutal.
'You know with my movies I reach for difference and I reach for change and I think - especially the American press - they're not up for change. They're too comfortable with what they know.'
Scott admitted that it was a challenge to infuse drama into some of his scenarios and in an interview for his 1990 film Days of Thunder, he was honest about where some of the ideas came from.

'I went back and I stole from all race movies to date,' he said. 'I took the better elements, then tried to build on them. Really, the speed, the energy and the placement of the audience inside some of the cars came in the editing room.









Industry veteran: Producer and director Tony Scott with producer Jerry Bruckheimer at a black tie event and receiving a lifetime achievement award (right)




'I'm always pushing for something new and fresh in the way things are shot, and the rest happens in the editing room. The real speed comes from the cutters and what they do with the celluloid.'
He was known for directing action movies with a fast, kinetic pace. Scott frequently worked with Denzel Washington, most recently on the runaway train drama Unstoppable.
Scott and Washington collaborated on three other films - Man on Fire, Deja Vu, and The Taking of Pelham 123.
Along with countless commercials, their company also produced the CBS dramas NUMB3RS and The Good Wife as well as a 2011 documentary about the Battle of Gettysburg for the History Channel.


LIFE BEHINDS THE LENS: THE CAREER OF TONY SCOTT


British-born Scott, who lived in Beverly Hills, was producer and director Ridley Scott's younger brother.

Distinct visual styles mark both siblings' films - Ridley Scott mastering the creation of entire worlds with such films as Gladiator, Blade Runner, Alien and this year's Prometheus, Tony Scott known for hyper-kinetic action and editing on such films as his most recent, the runaway train thriller Unstoppable, starring regular collaborator Denzel Washington.
Tony was the first of the Scott brothers to enjoy blockbuster success with Top Gun, starring Tom Cruise, the top-grossing film of 1986 at $176 million.

Scott teamed with Cruise again four years later on the hit Days of Thunder. He also had a sequel to Top Gun in development.
But Ridley Scott later managed more and bigger hits than his brother and earned a level of critical respect never achieved by Tony Scott.

Gladiator won the best-picture Academy Award for 2000 and earned Ridley Scott one of his three best-director nominations; Tony Scott never was in the running for an Oscar, and critics often slammed his movies for emphasizing style over substance.
The two brothers ran Scott Free Productions and were working jointly on a film called Killing Lincoln, based on the best seller by Bill O'Reilly.

Their company produced the CBS dramas NUMB3RS and The Good Wife as well as a 2011 documentary about the Battle of Gettysburg for the History Channel.
Besides Unstoppable, Scott worked with Washington on four other movies: Crimson Tide, Man on Fire, Deja Vu and The Taking of Pelham 123.
Other Scott films include True Romance, written by Quentin Tarantino, The Fan, with Robert De Niro, and Enemy of the State, starring Will Smith.

• For confidential support call the Samaritans in the UK on 08457 90 90 90 or visit a local Samaritans branch, see Samaritans Home Page for details. In the U.S. call the National Suicide Prevention Line on 1-800-273-8255

VIDEO: Scott had a successful career, working with some of the best actors in the business







Read more:

• Los Angeles Times: Tony Scott didn't have brain cancer, family tells coroner
• TMZ.com: Tony Scott Suicide -- NO Brain Cancer
• 'Top Gun' director who leaped to death from bridge had 'inoperable brain cancer' - NYPOST.com
• Deadline Hollywood: Tony Scott Did Not Have Brain Cancer

Read more: Tony Scott: 'Top Gun' director didn't have brain cancer, report claims | Mail Online