Actors and directors took to social media to pay tribute to British director Alan Parker, who died Friday. The filmmaker behind “Evita, “The Commitments” and “Bugsy Malone” was 76.
Parker’s first feature film was 1976’s “Bugsy Malone.” He directed over 25 films, and his last film was “The Life of David Gale” starring Kevin Spacey and Kate Winslet. Parker received two Oscar nominations, one for “Midnight Express” and “Mississippi Burning.”
The British Academy of Film and Television Arts wrote, “We are deeply saddened to hear of the passing of BAFTA Fellow Alan Parker. As BAFTA-winning filmmaker, he brought us joy with Bugsy Malone, The Commitments, Midnight Express and many more.”
Andrew Lloyd Webber who remembered Parker for their collaboration on his adaptation of “Evita,” wrote, “Very sad to hear the news of Alan Parker’s death. My friend and collaborator on the Evita movie and one of the few directors to truly understand musicals on screen.”
Matthew Modine, who stared in “Birdy,” wrote, “Being cast in his epic film, Birdy, transformed my life.”
Ben Stiller wrote, “So sad to hear of Alan Parker’s passing. What a great director who made what I consider “real” movies. He inspired so many filmmakers: ‘Fame’, ‘Midnight Express,’ ‘Mississippi Burning’…Watch his films – they are some of the best of the 70s and 80s.”
Read more tributes to the distinguished director.