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Kite/Snakes on a Plane Director David R. Ellis Passes Away
posted on by Egan Loo
The Deadline website reports that film director David R. Ellis passed away in Johannesburg, South Africa early this morning (Los Angeles time). He was 60.
Ellis was in South Africa to prepare for his live-action film adaptation of the anime Kite with his Snakes on the Plane lead actor Samuel L. Jackson at the beginning of this year. According to Kite anime creator Yasuomi Umetsu, the lead actress was already cast by December.
Ellis was born in Los Angeles on September 1, 1952. In 1986, he began directing second unit and action footage on films, including later films such as The Matrix Reloaded and Harry Potter And The Philosopher's Stone. Ellis later directed Homeward Bound 2: Lost In San Francisco, Shark Night 3D, Cellular, the sequels Final Destination 2 and The Final Destination, and Asylum.
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