Alvin Sargent, screenwriter of 2004's Spider-Man 2 and 2007's Spider-Man 3, has passed away at the age of 92.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, the award-winning screenwriter was found to have died of natural causes at his home in Seattle on Thursday. Sargent penned such films as Paper Moon, The Sterile Cuckoo and What About Bob? He won Academy Awards for 1977's Julia and 1981's Ordinary People.
The Philadelphia native influenced the careers of many in Hollywood. Former Paramount President David Paul Kirkpatrick claims he became "involved in the movie business because of Alvin Sargent." Director J.J. Abrams, known for his work on the new Star Wars trilogy, credits Sargent's Ordinary People as the inspiration for his 1991 film Regarding Henry.
Later in his career, Sargent wrote the screenplays for Spider-Man 2 and Spider-Man 3, writing the latter with Sam Raimi and Ivan Raimi. Spider-Man 2 is often credited as one of the best superhero films of all time. While uncredited on the first Spider-Man film, he did provide a dialogue polish on the screenplay. Sargent also provided a rewrite on 2012's The Amazing Spider-Man.
Sargent is survived by Julia, his stepdaughter; Anna, Olivia, Lillian and Oliver, his grandchildren; Lawrence, his great-grandson. The family has asked donations to Stand Up to Cancer, which his late wife Laura Ziskin founded, be made in lieu of flowers.