Los Angeles, .- Californian filmmaker John Singleton, the first African-American Oscar nominee for best direction and known especially for the film “Boyz n the Hood” (1991), died today in Los Angeles at age 51 after suffering a stroke two weeks ago that left him in a coma.
“We are sad to report that John Singleton has died.” John died today quietly and surrounded by his family and friends, “the filmmaker’s relatives said today in a press release.
Earlier on Monday, Singleton’s relatives had announced that life support was going to be taken away from him today.
“This has been an anguished decision,” said a spokesman for the family, who said they had the “careful” advice of the doctors who have treated Singleton to decide on this painful measure.
“We are grateful to his fans, his friends and colleagues for the outpouring of love and prayers during these incredibly difficult times, and we want to thank all the doctors at Cedars Sinai (Los Angeles hospital who treated Singleton) for the impeccable care he received.” , they added.
Singleton was hospitalized in Los Angeles after he felt bad after returning from a trip to Costa Rica.
The director was able to get to the hospital on his own, but on April 17 he suffered a stroke.
TMZ, who had the stroke exclusive, detailed last week that Singleton was in a coma.
A referent of African-American cinema since the 90s, Singleton entered the big door in Hollywood thanks to “Boyz n the Hood”, an acclaimed street drama about the raw and violent life of young black people in Los Angeles.
With Cuba Gooding Jr., Laurence Fishburne, Ice Cube and Morris Chestnut as protagonists, “Boyz n the Hood” gave Singleton two Oscar nominations: best original script and best direction.
With just turned 24, Singleton became the youngest Oscar-nominated director for best direction, a record he still has.
Along with other black directors like Spike Lee, Singleton developed a career focused mainly on realism and vindication to show the hard life of the African-American community and the racism that still exists in the country.
“John Singleton was a prolific and innovative director who changed the game and opened doors in Hollywood, a world that was only a few miles away, but nevertheless a world away, from the neighborhood in which he grew up,” his family members said today. farewell text in which highlighted the origins of the filmmaker in the troubled South Central neighborhood of Los Angeles.
His filmography includes titles like “Poetic Justice” (1993), with Janet Jackson and Tupac Shakur as stars; the choral film “Higher Learning” (1995); the “remake” of “Shaft” (2000) with Samuel L. Jackson as protagonist; or “Four Brothers” (2005), whose cast was led by Mark Wahlberg, Tyrese Gibson, André Benjamin and Garrett Hedlund.
Director of the music video “Remember the Time” by Michael Jackson, the last work of Singleton was the series “Snowfall”, in which he served as director and executive producer and narrates the crack epidemic that Los Angeles lived in the 80s .
Numerous Hollywood personalities, especially within the African-American community, reacted with sadness on social networks today to the death of the director.
“Regretting the death of collaborator and true friend John Singleton, he opened the way for many young directors always staying true to who he was and where he came from,” wrote Samuel L. Jackson on Twitter.
“A genius, thank you for capturing us like nobody else,” said Janelle Monáe.
“John was a brave artist and a true inspiration, his vision changed everything,” said Jordan Peele, the director of “Get Out” (2017) and “Us” (2019).
The Academy of Hollywood, which annually organizes the Oscars, and other stars of film and television such as Mark Wahlberg, Viola Davis, Halle Berry, Ice Cube, Ava DuVernay, Ron Howard, William Friedkin or Regina King also offered a last goodbye to Singleton on social networks (EFEUSA)
