David Giler, writer-producer of Alien franchise, dies aged 77

David Giler has died at the age of 77 in his Bangkok home on December 19th, with no known cause of death at this current time.

The writer and producer is best known for his work on the Alien film franchise.

His longtime friend and fellow Alien producer Walter Hill announced the news in a statement.

“If you knew David, you knew he was special,” he said. “The magic of his personality is hard to describe: funny, angry, extremely knowledgeable, extremely well read; it was my privilege to write and produce with him, and more importantly, to have his close and deep friendship for nearly 50 years.”

Giler’s first breakout moment in Hollywood arrived in 1962 when he wrote the teleplay for an episode of ABC’s The Gallant Men. He spent the 1960s penning scripts for television shows Burke’s Law, Kraft Suspense Theatre, and The Man From U.N.C.L.E, among others.

Giler ventured into the world of feature films in 1970 when he wrote the screenplay for Myra Breckinridge.

Writing for films like The Parallax View, The Black Bird, and Fun with Dick and Jane then followed.

Iin 1979, he eventually landed the role of producer on the first-ever Alien flick.

Giler has since worked on every single Alien movie in the franchise, serving as a writer on both Aliens and Alien 3. He went on to produce 1997’s Alien Resurrection and 2017’s Alien: Covenant, as well as both Alien vs Predator movies in the 2000s.