Charles “Chuck” Russell, the filmmaker behind Hollywood blockbusters The Mask, The Scorpion King, and Eraser, has died at 74.
Russell passed away on Wednesday at his home in San Diego, his attorney confirmed to Variety. While no cause of death was revealed, local authorities responded to a report of an unconscious man at Russell’s residence.
Like many filmmakers, Russell began his career in horror, working in production on the 1981 indie Hell Night before producing and co-writing Dreamscape, the 1984 sci-fi thriller starring Dennis Quaid.
He directed two acclaimed horror films — the well-received 1987 Freddy Krueger sequel A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors and the 1988 remake of The Blob — before stepping behind the camera on larger commercial fare, beginning with the Jim Carrey-led superhero comedy The Mask in 1994.
The director subsequently helmed the Arnold Schwarzenegger action film Eraser (1996) and the horror film Bless the Child. In 2002, Russell helped Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson transition from wrestler to box office star with the Mummy sequel The Scorpion King.
Following that success, Russell took a fifteen-year break from filmmaking, though he returned behind the camera to produce a 2010 episode of Fringe.
Beyond directing, Russell is also credited as producer on cult 1980s comedies including Girls Just Want to Have Fun and Back to School, as well as Michael Mann-directed crime thriller Collateral.
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