Long time film editor David Brenner sadly passed away this past Thursday. No specific details have been given about the cause of death as of yet. He was 59 years old.

David began his career under legendary director Oliver Stone with 1988’s Talk Radio. He would be a frequent collaborator with Stone on films like 1989’s Born on the Fourth of July, for which he won an Oscar for Best Film Editing, 1991’s The Doors, 1993’s Heaven & Earth, 2006’s World Trade Center and 2010’s Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps.

David also worked with director Roland Emmerich on multiple projects beginning with 1996’s Independence Day, then continued with 2000’s The Patriot, 2004’s The Day After Tomorrow and 2009’s 2012.

David also had a brief encounter in the world of swashbuckling as he co-edited the fourth Pirates of the Caribbean film, On Stranger Tides, with Wyatt Smith in 2011.

In recent years he was perhaps best known for his work with Zack Snyder, being an editor for 2013’s Man of Steel, 2016’s Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice as well as both the 2017 theatrical version of Justice League and 2021’s Zack Snyder’s Justice League.

Around the time David passed away he was working with James Cameron on editing both Avatar 2 and Avatar 3. James Cameron made the following statement on social media after hearing of David’s passing:

“We have lost a very dear member of the Avatar Family, David Brenner, an editor extraordinaire on the Avatar sequels. Our hearts go out to his wife Amber and their children Annie, Haider and Sasha. His talent, compassion and friendship will be truly missed.“

Both Avatar 2 and Avatar 3 will release posthumous.

It is sad to loose such a legendary editor. Many people overlook the editing process and think that the director or the screenwriter are the ones with all the ideas. But remember that the editing process on the original 1977 Star Wars arguably saved the film from becoming a failure.

Source: Deadline