Morgan Spurlock, the documentary filmmaker who ate only McDonalds for a month in Super Size Me, died from complications from cancer on Thursday, May 23. He was 53. Spurlock’s publicist confirmed the news in a press release. “It was a sad day, as we said goodbye to my brother Morgan,” said Craig Spurlock who worked with him on several projects. “Morgan gave so much through his art, ideas, and generosity. The world has lost a true creative genius and a special man. I am so proud to have worked together with him.”
The director shot to fame in 2004 following the release of Super Size Me, which earned him an Oscar nomination. It fundamentally shifted attitudes toward the fast-food industry and its dangers to our health — even if not much has categorically changed. Spurlock released a follow-up to the film, Super Size Me 2: Holy Chicken!, in 2017, which skewered the meat industry. The film was pulled from Sundance and the now-defunct Youtube Red after he detailed his personal history with sexual misconduct but eventually premiered on the latter platform in 2019. In the intervening years, Spurlock helmed works that delved into wide-ranging issues, including the war in Afghanistan with Where in the World Is Osama Bin Laden, minimum wage and immigrant labor with 30 Days, and elder care and gambling with Morgan Spurlock Inside Man.
