Filmmaker Jean-Marc Vallée has died. The Quebecois director, best known for HBO’s Big Little Lies and the Oscar-winning film Dallas Buyers Club, was 58. Further details are awaited, but Deadline reports that he died at his cabin outside Quebec City, leaving his family and advisors in shock.
Vallée’s producing partner Nathan Ross said in a statement that his work “will live on.” In his own words:
“Jean-Marc stood for creativity, authenticity and trying things differently. He was a true artist and a generous, loving guy. Everyone who worked with him couldn’t help but see the talent and vision he possessed. He was a friend, creative partner and an older brother to me. The maestro will sorely be missed but it comforts knowing his beautiful style and impactful work he shared with the world will live on.”
Born in Montreal in 1963, Vallée studied filmmaking at the Université du Québec. He made his feature debut with the Canadian thriller Black List, after learning the ropes on music videos and shorts. He also directed the semi-autobiographical coming-of-age film C.R.A.Z.Y. His 2009 film The Young Victoria was nominated for three Academy Awards. Starring Emily Blunt in the lead role, the period drama was co-produced by Martin Scorsese.
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His 2011 drama Café de Flore earned 13 nominations at the Genie Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Screenplay for Vallée.
He broke out in a big way in Hollywood with Dallas Buyers Club, which won stars Matthew McConnaughey and Jared Leto Oscars. He followed it up with the 2014 drama Wild, which earned Reese Witherspoon and Laura Dern Academy Award nominations for Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress, respectively. His final feature was 2015’s Demolition, a drama starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Naomi Watts and Chris Cooper.
In recent years, Vallée had transitioned almost entirely to television, helming each episode of the acclaimed HBO series Big Little Lies. His work earned him the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Limited Series, Movie or Dramatic Special. Originally billed as a miniseries, Big Little Lies was renewed for a second season. Vallée chose not to return, with Andrea Arnold taking over as director.
He chose instead to focus on another dark drama on HBO, Sharp Objects, which remains his final credit. Starring Amy Adams and based on the novel by Gillian Flynn, the eight-episode miniseries won critical acclaim, and earned Vallée a nomination at the Directors Guild of America Awards.
Vallée was set to direct another series for HBO, Gorilla and the Bird, based on a memoir by Zack McDermott. He is survived by two children and three siblings.