Ted Kotcheff was an immensely celebrated filmmaker, directing classics such as Weekend at Bernie’s and First Blood, the original Rambo film
Ted Kotcheff has died at the age of 94; his heartbroken family has announced.
The Canadian director was behind many classic Hollywood productions, including Weekend at Bernie’s, First Blood and Fun with Dick and Jane.
Thomas Kotcheff, the filmmaker’s son, confirmed the news his father died at Hospital Joya in Nuevo Nayarit in Mexico, surrounded by his family, as reported by TMZ.
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He is survived by his wife Laifun Chun, their two children, and three children from his first marriage to British actress Sylvia Kay.
Having worked on Law & Order: SVU, creator Dick Wolf led tributes, saying: “Ted was an integral part of the SVU family for over 13 years. He was not only a great producer and director, he was also a close friend. I will miss him.”
Fans of the filmmaker have also shared their sadness over the news, with one writing on social media: “Just watched First Blood last week, and viewed his comments in the special features. You could tell the guy loved making movies. Absolutely infectious commentary. RIP.”
“One of the great Canadian directors. RIP Ted,” another added.
Arguably Ted’s most successful work was First Blood, the original film in the Sylvester Stallone-led series Rambo.
Released in 1982, the film was an overnight success, taking home $160 million worldwide against a $15 million budget.
Despite its popularity, Ted never returned to direct the many sequels; in fact, he actively refused to do them.
Explaining his decision with Filmmaker magazine in 2016, Ted said: “They offered me the first sequel, and after I read the script I said, ‘In the first film he doesn’t kill anybody. In this film he kills 75 people’. It seemed to be celebrating the Vietnam War, which I thought was one of the stupidest wars in history.”
He added: “Fifty-five-thousand young Americans died and so many veterans committed suicide. I couldn’t turn myself inside out like that and make that kind of picture. Of course, I could have been a rich man today — that sequel made $300 million.”