Hugh Hudson | Photo Credit: AP
Hugh Hudson, British filmmaker who debuted as a feature director with the Oscar-winning Olympic drama “Chariots of Fire” and later went on to make famous films such as “My Life So Far” and the Oscar-nominated “Greystroke”, passed away. It is done. At the age of 86.
Hudson’s family released a brief statement announcing that he had died in a London hospital on Friday “after a short illness”.
A native of London, Hudson began as a documentary editor and producer and also in television advertising before finding work in feature films in the late 1970s as second unit director on Alan Parker’s “Midnight Express”. Work done.
In 1981, producer David Puttnam asked Hudson to direct “Chariots of Fire”, which starred Ben Cross and Nigel Havers as British athletes of opposite religions and backgrounds at the 1924 Olympics.
With its inspirational plot and passionate theme music by Greek composer Vangelis, “Chariots of Fire” was a solid commercial success and won four Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Score. Hudson, nominated for director, later helped produce a stage adaptation of “Chariots”, timed for the 2012 Summer Olympics in London.
He had mixed success with future film projects. “Graystroke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes”, Ralph Richardson’s 1984 film in his final film role, was a box office success, receiving three Oscar nominations.
But two years later, he was nominated for a Golden Raspberry for directing the critical and commercial flop “Revolution”. His other credits included “My Life So Far”, “Lost Angels” and “Altamira”. He also co-wrote “Tiger’s Nest”, released in 2022.
According to his family statement, Hudson is survived by his wife Mary, their son Thomas and his first wife Sue.