Oscar-winning producer Jeremy Thomas dead at 77
Oscar-winning producer Jeremy Thomas died just three days before the premiere of his latest film.
Oscar-winning producer Jeremy Thomas has died at the age of 77 - days before the premiere of his latest film.
The legend, known for movies including The Last Emperor and Sexy Beast, "passed away peacefully" surrounded by his family and loved ones at his country home in Oxfordshire, South East England, on Friday (11.09.26), his team said in a statement.
Tributes have poured in for Thomas, whose career spanned more than 50 years.
Taking to X, his friend Jon Thompson, who worked on Mission: Impossible III, penned: "I am deeply saddened by the passing of my dear friend and colleague, Jeremy Thomas, a remarkable man who helped me immensely over the years.
"In one unforgettable act of generosity, he sold me Natural Nylon’s entire back catalogue of scripts for the princely sum of one pound.
"I will always be grateful for his friendship, kindness and support. He will be greatly missed."
Also on the social media platform, Paul Ridd, the CEO and festival director of the Edinburgh International Film Festival, typed: "The loss of Jeremy Thomas is enormous, to film culture and to the world. Such a beautiful man and a extraordinarily generous supporter of @edfilmfest.
"What a legacy. I feel honoured to have known him and to have spent time with him. Condolences to all who knew him and loved him. (sic)"
And a third X user wrote: "Rest in peace Jeremy Thomas.
"An incredible producer, made truly fascinating films, showed us things in British and international cinema nobody else could.
"Made Sexy Beast, Last Emperor, the best of Roeg, Cronenberg and Skolismowski. His directed All The Little Animals is terrific (sic)."
Thomas was a highly respected figure in the film industry, having worked with many directors, including Bernardo Bertolucci, David Cronenberg and Matteo Garrone.
In 1988, Jeremy won the Best Picture Oscar for The Last Emperor, one of nine gongs Bertolucci's 1987 biographical drama film about Puyi, the last Emperor of China, received at that year's Academy Awards.
Other films Thomas worked on include Bertolucci's 1990 drama The Sheltering Sky, Cronenberg's 1996 erotic thriller Crash, Jonathan Glazer's first feature, 2000's thriller Sexy Beast, Ben Wheatley's 2015 sci-fi dystopian thriller High-Rise, and Garrone's 2019 take on Pinocchio.
He died just three days before his and filmmaker Takashi Miike's collaboration, Bad Lieutenant: Tokyo, premieres at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 14.
In 2006, Thomas received a European Film Award for Outstanding European Achievement in World Cinema from the European Film Academy.
The star was born in London in July 1949 into a filmmaking family. His dad, Ralph Thomas, directed numerous Doctor movies, while his uncle, Gerald Thomas, directed all of the Carry On films.
He married Claudia Frohlich in 1977, but they divorced four years later, and Thomas went on to tie the knot with Vivien Coughman in 1982.
Thomas was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2009 New Year Honours List for services to the film industry.
