Director Ivan Reitman Has Died At 75
This one is especially sad for anyone who spent a single Saturday of their youth watching Ghostbusters interrupted by about 30 commercials on basic cable. Ivan Reitman, the person responsible for both Ghostbusters movies, Twins, Kindergarten Cop, Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot, and tons of other movies you can likely recall with merely a flash of a VHS cover in your brain, has died at the age of 75 in California.
Ivan Reitman’s kids – Jason, Catherine, and Caroline Reitman – confirmed the news earlier today. And according to their statement, it sounds as though Ivan’s death came as a complete shock. via Deadline:
Our family is grieving the unexpected loss of a husband, father, and grandfather who taught us to always seek the magic in life,” children Jason Reitman, Catherine Reitman, and Caroline Reitman said in a joint statement to the outlet.
The statement continues, “We take comfort that his work as a filmmaker brought laughter and happiness to countless others around the world. While we mourn privately, we hope those who knew him through his films will remember him always.”
As mentioned already, he is survived by his children, several grandchildren, and his wife of forty-six years, Geneviève Robert. Jason Reitman also commented on his father’s death on social media with a personal statement:
I’ve lost my hero.
All I want is the chance to tell my father one more story.
He came from a family of survivors and turned his legacy into laughter.
Thank you for the kind messages. Enjoy his movies and remember his storytelling gifts. Nothing would make him happier. pic.twitter.com/tSijfxSnLg— Jason Reitman (@JasonReitman) February 14, 2022
Ivan Reitman was born in 1946 and came to Canada when he was four years old as a refugee from Czechoslovakia. His early career is so Toronto-specific, Drake would have a difficult time out-Toronto-ing Ivan Reitman. Ivan started working at CITY-TV in Toronto in the ’70s, before being fired after a year by Moses Znaimer (never has a more 1970s Toronto sentence been written). He then went on to produce two films for David Cronenberg (Shivers and Rabid). He also continued to direct smaller films during that time. But his big Hollywood break came when he produced Animal House in 1978. After that, he landed the job directing Meatballs in 1979, and it was pretty much The Ivan Reitman Show after that. Quick, name a funny movie from the ’80s. There’s a very good chance it was either directed by Ivan Reitman or produced by him, or hell, maybe he stopped by set one day and hung around craft services. That’s how deeply ingrained in 1980s comedy film culture the man was.
He directed one of my personal favorites, Stripes, then Ghostbusters 1 and Ghostbusters 2, Twins, Junior, Kindergarten Cop. We have Ivan Reitman to thank for Arnold Schwarzenegger’s comedy career. He made as many comedies with Arnold as he did Bill Murray, which almost feels like the most random bit of trivia from Ivan Reitman’s life. Arnold commented on Ivan’s death shortly after it was announced, with a formal statement and some throwback pics.
Thanks for everything, Ivan. My full statement: pic.twitter.com/lEBmGB9eue
— Arnold (@Schwarzenegger) February 14, 2022
Ivan’s production company made movies like Heavy Metal, Beethoven 1 and 2, Space Jam, Private Parts, Old School, Road Trip (yes the Tom Green movie), and the latest Ghostbusters film, Ghostbusters: Afterlife, which was directed by his son Jason. He also directed the music video for Ray Parker Jr.s’ theme from Ghostbusters, which is a pretty cool credit to have on your resume.
Clearly, this news hit fans of funny movies hard, since Ivan Reitman was kind of an icon of the 1980s comedy world. Many notable types responded to the news by hopping on social media and eulogizing Ivan Reitman and his work. Still no statement from Slimer, but I assume it’s coming soon (he’s likely still processing the news).
I’m in absolute shock. I had the honor of working so closely with Ivan and it was always such a learning experience. He directed some of my favorite comedies of all time. All of us in comedy owe him so very much. Thank you for everything, Ivan. Truly. ❤️❤️ https://t.co/SGnI7OcT9s
— Paul Feig (@paulfeig) February 14, 2022
Ivan Reitman was old school in the best way, and kind. I loved working with him. It’s sad he’s gone, it makes me feel older and like my childhood movies are more faraway than ever. RIP ❤️
— Mindy Kaling (@mindykaling) February 14, 2022
Ivan Reitman was very good to me and @chrizmillr. He sought us out and encouraged us when we made our first movie. He saw an early cut of Spider-verse (“Half of this is the best movie I have ever seen and the other half is bad”) and spent DAYS giving us helpful notes… RIP Ivan
— Phil Lord y Betancourt (@philiplord) February 14, 2022
Opening night of Ghostbusters at UA Plainview was like a rock concert. The place exploded with joy. It was one of the most memorable moments of my childhood. Ivan Reitman influenced everything we all love about film comedy. A true legend. https://t.co/AHKAoo1ahB
— Judd Apatow (@JuddApatow) February 14, 2022
Pic: INSTAR