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Academy Award-nominated director Wolfgang Petersen,for "In the Line of Fire," "Air Force One," and "The Perfect Storm," has been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. died because of Confirmed by Fox News Digital. He was 81 years old.
The German filmmaker died peacefully in the arms of his wife of 50 years, Maria Antoinette, at his home in Brentwood, Calif., on Friday.
In 1981, Petersen got his breakthrough with the German-language World War II film Das Boot, which he wrote and directed. The submarine epic earned him six Academy Award nominations, with Petersen nominated for Best Director and Adapted Screenplay.
The success of "Das Boot" catapulted Petersen to international fame and paved the way for him to direct Hollywood blockbusters. His first English project was the 1984 fantasy film 'The NeverEnding Story', followed by his 1985 sci-fi action drama 'Enemy Mine'.
The 1984 fantasy film The Neverending Story Petersen's first English-language film. (Photo by dpa/picture Alliance via Getty Images)
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Petersen's 1993 film In The Line Of Fire debuted to critical acclaim and was a huge hit. His thriller, a political action starring Clint Eastwood,John Malkovich and Rene Russo, was nominated for three Oscars.
Next, his 1995 action thriller Outbreak, led by Dustin Hoffman, Rene Russo, Morgan Freeman, Donald Sutherland, Cuba Gooding Jr., Kevin Spacey, and Patrick Dempsey. ” was a commercial success.
In 1997, Petersen directed the blockbuster political action thriller Air Force One, starring Harrison Ford, Gary Oldman and Glenn Close, which was the fifth highest-grossing film of the year.
In 1997 Petersen starred in Air Force One" directed. Glenn Close, Harrison Ford, Gary Oldman. I call it a special memory to be directed by Petersen. (Photo by Ursula Düren/ picture Alliance via Getty Images)
In a statement obtained by Fox News her digital after Petersen's death, Close said: said like this. Directed by Wolfgang in Air Force One, is still a special memory. The script was thrilling and incredibly intense, but I remember laughing a lot, especially in the scenes around the giant table in the war room.
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She continued, "Wolfgang had a remotely controlled camera that could rotate on the fly covering us all seamlessly, one after the other.
"He said, 'Acting... acting... no acting... no acting... acting.' .. Oh acting!” He wasted no one's time. My memory is of a man who was full of joy in life, doing what he loved most."
The Oscar-nominated filmmaker died Friday of pancreatic cancer at his home in Brentwood, Calif. (Photo credit: Gisela Schober) /Getty Images for Bavaria Film)
Petersen,George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg, Diane Lane, Brad Pitt, Eric Bana, Orlando Bloom headlined the 2004 period drama Troy.
The poor box office performance of the 2006 disaster film Poseidon forced Petersen on a ten-year hiatus. He's back with his 2016 heist comedy 'Vier gegen die Bank'. This will be his first German-language project since 'Das Boot' and his last film.
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In addition to his wife Maria Antoinette, Peterson has a son, Daniel, a daughter-in-law, Berit, and two grandchildren, Maya and Julian. His representative confirmed to Fox News Digital that his funeral will be private.
Fox News Digital's Larry Fink contributed to this report
Ashley Hume is entertainment his writer for Fox News Digital .
