Ivan Reitman, who is best known for directing films such as “Ghostbusters” as well as “Meatballs and “Stripes,” has died at the age of 75…
Director, writer and producer Ivan Reitman has died at the age of 75.
His family announced the news on Sunday after Reitman passed away in his sleep at home, although a cause of death has not been confirmed yet.
“Our family is grieving the unexpected loss of a husband, father, and grandfather who taught us to always seek the magic in life,” his children, director Jason Reitman, Catherine Reitman and Caroline Reitman said in a joint statement.
“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.”
Born in Czechoslovakia before moving to Canada, Reitman got involved in filmmaking while in college and that’s also where he encountered many of the comedians and actors who would go onto become lifetime collaborators with him. In those early days, Reitman worked alongside future stars such as Rick Moranis, Eugene Levy, Martin Short and Dan Aykroyd.
His first major credit came as a producer for the popular frat comedy “Animal House, which helped to transform John Belushi into a household name. Reitman then transitioned into directing where he worked on a pair of comedies called “Meatballs” and “Stripes,” which saw him team up with Bill Murray for the first time.
Reitman’s biggest success came in 1984 when he directed “Ghostbusters,” which went onto become a huge box office hit before eventually spawning a sequel in 1989.
While he didn’t always sit behind the director’s chair, Reitman also served as an executive producer on dozens of popular films including “Space Jam,” “Old School” and the “Beethoven” series.
Most recently, Reitman served as an executive producer on the 2021 film “Ghostbusters: Afterlife,” which was directed by his son, Jason Reitman, which reunited the family with stars from the original film including Murray, Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson and Sigourney Weaver.
Reitman is survived by wife and three children.
