Jeremy Thomas, producer of The Last Emperor and Sexy Beast, dies aged 77
Jeremy Thomas, the British film producer behind The Last Emperor, Sexy Beast and High-Rise, has died aged 77.
A representative said he died peacefully on Friday, 11 September, at his country home in Oxfordshire, surrounded by family and loved ones, as reported by The Guardian. Deadline gave the date of death as 11 September 2026.
Thomas was born in 1949 into a film family. His father was Ralph Thomas, the director whose work included the Doctor in the House series starring Dirk Bogarde. His uncle was Gerald Thomas, who directed all 30 Carry On films.
He began in the cutting room. He worked as an assistant editor on The Harder They Come and on Ken Loach's Family Life. His first credit as a producer was Mad Dog Morgan in 1976, starring Dennis Hopper as a 19th-century Australian outlaw.
His longest association was with director Bernardo Bertolucci. The Last Emperor, directed by Bertolucci and produced by Thomas, won nine Oscars including best picture, according to The Guardian. Thomas also backed British productions across five decades. They included Sexy Beast and High-Rise.
Off the set, he served as chair of the British Film Institute, the UK body that preserves and supports film. He received a Bafta award for outstanding British contribution to cinema, the honour given by the British film academy. He directed once. All the Little Animals, starring Christian Bale, was released in 1999.
His latest production was Bad Lieutenant: Tokyo, directed by Takashi Miike. It is due to premiere at the Toronto film festival on Monday. Thomas also had a long working link with composer Ryuichi Sakamoto, and was executive producer of the concert film Ryuichi Sakamoto: Opus, as reported by Variety.
