William Friedkin

William David Friedkin August 29 1935 August 7 2023 was an American film television and opera director producer and screenwriter who was closely identified with the New Hollywood movement of the 1970s Beginning his career in documentaries in the early 1960s he is best known for his crime thriller film The French Connection 1971 which won five Academy Awards including Best Picture and Best Director and the horror film The Exorcist 1973 which earned him another Academy Award nomination for Best Director Friedkins other films in the 1970s and 1980s include the drama The Boys in the Band 1970 considered a milestone of queer cinema the originally deprecated now lauded thriller Sorcerer 1977 the crime comedy drama The Brinks Job 1978 the controversial thriller Cruising 1980 and the neonoir thriller To Live and Die in LA 1985 Although Friedkins works suffered an overall commercial and critical decline in the late 1980s his last three feature films all based on plays were positively received by critics the psychological horror film Bug 2006 the crime film Killer Joe 2011 and the legal drama film The Caine Mutiny CourtMartial 2023 released two months after his death He also worked extensively as an opera director from 1998 until his death and directed various television films and series episodes for television Description above from the Wikipedia article William Friedkin licensed under CCBYSA full list of contributors on Wikipedia