Hollywood film producer Sam Mercer passes away at 69

Film producer Sam Mercer died of Alzheimer’s at his South Pasadena residence at the age of 69, his spouse Tegan Jones announced. Although Mercer died on February 12, the news came out only on the evening of March 14. Mercer's wife Jones broke the news to The Hollywood Reporter.

Mercer produced an array of M Night Shyamalan directorials, starting with the Oscar-nominated horror feature The Sixth Sense. He started out as a film location manager with projects such as Stripes, National Lampoon’s Vacation, Pee-wee’s Big Adventure, Peggy Sue Got Married, and The Witches of Eastwick. Then, he worked as a production executive for Good Morning, Vietnam and Dead Poets Society, as well as as Hollywood Pictures' VP of production for projects like Arachnophobia, The Hand That Rocks the Cradle, The Joy Luck Club, and Quiz Show.

He then joined Paramount and produced films such as Congo and The Relic, prior to the start of his long-time collaboration with Shyamalan. He worked with the India-born Hollywood director on Unbreakable, Signs, The Village, Lady in the Water, The Happening, and The Last Airbender.

In a recent statement, Shymalam said, “Mercer made every movie a family, and I’ve tried to emulate that in every film since. He made me laugh and took care of me at the same time. He did this with everyone. I’ll never forget his perfectly neat desk, his gentle eyes and his magical ability to convey that everything was going to be OK. When he was around, that was always true (sic).”

Mercer is survived by his wife, Jones, as well as his children, Sierra and Miles.