25 Movie Talents We Lost In 2016

American director Michael Cimino actually started out working as an advertising executive on New York City’s Madison Avenue before moving into the film industry and making his directorial debut with comedy crime drama Thunderbolt and Lightfoot starring Clint Eastwood and Jeff Bridges.

Next came the most acclaimed film of Cimino’s career, Vietnam War drama The Deer Hunter, which went on to win a total of five Academy Awards including Best Picture, Best Director and a Best Supporting Actor nod for star Christopher Walken.

From there it was mostly downhill for the polarizing director with box office flops like Heaven’s Gate and The Sicilian, though he did find some fans with his 1985 neo-noir action flick Year of the Dragon and a recent re-release of a director’s cut of Heaven’s Gate has seen it reassessed and subsequently praised.