Famed Filmmaker Passes Away At 53

Morgan Spurlock, the iconic filmmaker who brought the fast food industry to its knees with his documentary “Super Size Me,” has died at 53 after complications from cancer.

Spurlock captured his own physical and mental transformation while eating nothing but McDonald’s food for three meals a day. The 2004 film earned him an Academy Award nomination and the Writers Guild of America Best Director Award. Its notoriety prompted soul-searching among the food industry, elected officials, and cultural critics who credited him for helping piece together how obesity among Americans had spun out of control. At the time, roughly a third of all Americans were morbidly overweight, researchers found. At the end of the experiment, Spurlock’s cholesterol shot up 65 points and he gained a whopping 24.5 pounds while also experiencing depression and liver dysfunction, Variety reported.

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In a statement, Spurlock’s family said he “passed away peacefully surrounded by family and friends on May 23, 2024, in New York from complications of cancer.”

“It was a sad day, as we said goodbye to my brother Morgan. Morgan gave so much through his art, ideas, and generosity. The world has lost a true creative genius and a special man. I am so proud to have worked together with him,” his brother Craig said.

JUST IN: ‘Super Size Me’ filmmaker Morgan Spurlock has died at the age of 53 from complications of cancer.

Spurlock released a documentary in 2004 where he ate McDonalds every day for 30 days.

At the end of the experiment, Spurlock’s cholesterol shot up 65 points and he gained… pic.twitter.com/Rv8ZqypMDV

— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) May 24, 2024

Central to Spurlock’s criticism of McDonald’s was its forefront approach to offering super-size versions of its meals which included heaping portions of french fries and soda. He was required to order the largest option each time he ate as part of his self-imposed diet. “Super Size Me” struck a cultural nerve, rocketing to the top of the box office and collecting $22 million globally. Not long after its release, McDonald’s announced it would retire the super size option across its entire menu.

Born November 7th, 1970, in Parkersburg, West Virginia, Spurlock attained a BFA from New York University in 1993. He began his career as a New York playwright before transitioning into documentary filmmaking. The success of “Super Size Me” allowed Spurlock to continue to run moderately successful documentaries in the 13 years that followed, including investigations into Osama bin Laden, immigrant labor and the struggles of minimum wage workers, elder care, and corporate farming. For three seasons, FX ran “30 Days,” a program where Spurlock or a guest would spend 30 days in an unfamiliar setting, such as a Christian living with a Muslim family or an anti-gay man staying with an LGBT family.

During the #MeToo movement in 2017, reports of past sexual harassment by Spurlock effectively ended his career as a documentarian. Despite multiple attempts to release future projects on smaller platforms, he suffered a “career death” five years on, the Washington Post reported at the time.

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