Tony Scott 's death came as a great shock to the movie industry this week, though the context of the director's decision to commit suicide is beginning to take shape. A source close to the filmmaker told ABC News that he had been diagnosed with inoperable brain cancer.
Scott - a man responsible for 'Top Gun' and 'Days of Thunder' - died on Sunday (August 19, 2012) after jumping from a bridge in Los Angeles. Police received a 911 call at around 12.30pm that an individual had jumped off the Vincent Thomas Bridge - Tony Scott's body was discovered around 3pm. The Coroner's Office found several notes to loved ones in the director's car - which was parked nearby - and a suicide note was later found at his office, according to the Associated Press. His spokesman Simon Halls said in a statement, "I can confirm that Tony Scott has passed away. The family asks that their privacy is respected at this time". Scott, 68, is best known for the Tom Cruise starring 'Top Gun', which grossed more than $300 million worldwide, though he later struck up a successful partnership with Oscar-winner Denzel Washington and the pair made 'Crimson Tide', 'Man on Fire', 'Deja vu' and 'The Taking of Pelham 123' together. Tony and his brother - the producer and director Ridley Scott - formed the production company 'Scott Free' and recently worked together on the blockbuster 'Prometheus'.
Tributes have predictably poured in for the Scott, with director Ron Howard tweeting, "No more Tony Scott movies. Tragic day". He is survived by his wife Donna, and their twin sons.