'Harry Potter' assistant director Jamie Christopher passes away

LOS ANGELES: Top-notch assistant director Jamie Christopher, best known for his work on 'Harry Potter' franchise and Marvel films, has passed away.

According to US-based news outlet Variety, Christopher died on Tuesday in Los Angeles from heart complications. He was 52.

In a career spanning nearly three decades, Christopher became a frequent collaborator with directors like James Gunn and Rian Johnson along with Marvel Studio’s Kevin Feige.

After learning about Christopher's demise, Rian paid his heartfelt condolences via a statement.

“Jamie was a good friend, and he loved making movies. He loved his crew, loved his job, the process of it and the history of it. He was truly one of the greats, and this is a heartbreaking loss for everyone who was lucky enough to work with him," Rian said in a statement.

Christopher began his AD career in 1992 as the third AD on David Fincher’s 1992 film 'Alien 3'. In 1997, he was the second unit first AD on Luc Besson’s cult classic sci-fi film 'The Fifth Element' starring Bruce Wilis, Gary Oldman, and Milla Jovovich, and two years later joined Stephen Sommers as the second AD on 'The Mummy'.

Soon after, Christopher joined the production for the first installment of the Harry Potter franchise, 'Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone', where he served as the second unit’s first AD.

He reprised this role through the first five editions of the series until he became the first AD on 'Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince', and remained in that role until the eighth film was released in 2011.

He then worked with James Gunn on 'Guardians of the Galaxy' along with other films from Marvel including 'Avengers: Age of Ultron', 'Thor: The Dark World' and 'Black Widow', and had been ready to start work on 'Fantastic Four'.

Christopher is survived by his wife Carly and four children, Stella, Teddy, Phoebe and Killeon.