Director James Foley, known for helming two Fifty Shades of Grey sequels and 12 episodes of Netflix’s Emmy-winning thriller House of Cards, has died at the age of 71.
Foley, whose TV and film career spanned more than three decades, died “peacefully in his sleep earlier this week following a yearslong struggle with brain cancer,” his family told The Hollywood Reporter through a representative.
Born on December 28, 1953, in Bay Ridge, New York, Foley graduated from the State University of New York at Buffalo in 1978. He then earned an M.F.A. in film studies and production from the University of Southern California.
He made his directorial debut in 1984 with the romcom Reckless, starring Aidan Quinn and Daryl Hannah. That same year, he directed Madonna’s “Dress Me Up” music video, which would become his first of many collaborations with the pop icon. He later directed several of her other music videos, including “Live to Tell,” “Papa Don’t Preach,” “True Blue,” “Who’s That Girl” and “The Look of Love.”
In 1986, he went on to direct the crime-thriller At Close Range, which he entered into competition at the 36th Berlin International Film Festival. The movie, featuring Sean Penn and Christopher Walken, earned a nomination for the Golden Bear — the festival’s top prize.
Foley is also known for directing the 1992 crime-thriller Glengarry Glen Ross, starring Al Pacino, Alan Arkin, Alec Baldwin, Kevin Spacey, the late Jack Lemmon and Ed Harris. Pacino landed a Best Supporting Actor Oscar nomination for his portrayal of cutthroat real estate agent Richard “Ricky” Roma in the film.
Along the way, he eventually dipped his toes into TV, directing a single 1991 episode of David Lynch’s mystery classic Twin Peaks; a 1997 episode of ABC’s one-season anthology Gun; and a 2013 episode of the horror series Hannibal.
He later reunited with Spacey to direct the actor in 12 episodes of House of Cards, before going on to helm an episode of the mystery sci-fi Wayward Pines and two episodes of the legal drama Billions.
His most recent projects were also among his most commercially successful: Fifty Shades Darker (2017) and Fifty Shades Freed (2018), the two sequels in the erotic romance trilogy Fifty Shades of Grey, adapted from E. L. James’s book series.
Foley is survived by his brother, Kevin; sisters Eileen and Jo Ann; and nephew Quinn, along with their respective spouses. He was preceded in death by his other brother, Gerard.
