Andrew Gunn, the prolific film producer behind Disney hits like Freaky Friday, Sky High, and Cruella, has died.
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The 56-year-old passed away on March 2 at his Toronto home, two years after being diagnosed with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), according to The Hollywood Reporter.
The filmmaker’s death was announced by his family in an online obituary.
Gunn was best known for producing Disney comedies in the early 2000s, starting with Freaky Friday (2003). Starring Lindsay Lohan, Gunn originally pitched the film to Disney Motion Pictures president Nina Jacobson.
Per IMDb, his later credits include The Haunted Mansion (2003), College Road Trip (2008), Race to Witch Mountain (2009), Bad Santa 2 (2016), and last year’s Freakier Friday.
Horror fans might also recall Gunn playing a small role in the cult classic The Gate in 1987.
Gunn was born in Toronto on July 15, 1969. He earned a master’s degree from USC’s Annenberg School and also worked for John Hughes’ Great Oaks Entertainment in the late 1990s. In 2001, he founded Gunn Films and signed an exclusive production deal with Disney.
Andrew Gunn Helped Mentor Aspiring Writers at Disney
Gunn also played a key role in launching the Disney Writers Program in 2001, mentoring rising talents like David Berenbaum (Elf, The Haunted Mansion) and Matt Lopez (Father of the Bride 2022), among others.
Meanwhile, screenwriter Blaise Hemingway (2021’s Clifford the Big Red Dog) shared a tribute to Gunn on Instagram.
“In 2007, Andrew (along with Ann Marie Sanderlin and Amy Stenftenagel) read a script of mine and championed it (and me) to get me into the Disney Writers’ Program,” Hemingway wrote alongside a photo of Gunn. “It changed my life in every conceivable way. It shaped me into a complete writer. And—most importantly—on that third-floor hallway of offices I shared with Andrew for 3+ years, I made the best friends in the goddamned world, who all became my family.”
“Andrew Gunn’s legacy will go far beyond the movies he made. He’s the ‘godfather’ to more writers, producers, directors, and executives than I can count,” he added in part. “So many of us owe our careers to Andrew Gunn.”
“Rest in peace, buddy. Thank you for everything,” Hemingway concluded.
Meanwhile, Gunn is survived by his wife, Jane Bellamy Gunn, and his children, Isabelle and Connor. He is also survived by his mother, Anne Gunn; and his siblings, Hilary Knight, Graeme Gunn, and Cameron Gunn.