Andrew Gunn, producer of Disney's 'Freaky Friday' and 'Cruella,' dies at 56

Andrew Gunn, a movie shaper connected live-action Disney favorites including “Freaky Friday” and “Sky High,” has died. He was 56.

Gunn died Monday astatine his Toronto location pursuing a conflict with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, oregon ALS, according to an obituary.

“He was a courageous and humble antheral ever doing for others earlier himself. His emotion of family, friends, motorcycles and tattoos volition agelong beryllium remembered by those who knew him,” his woman Jane Bellamy Gunn said successful a connection to USA Today. She told the outlet that Andrew had been diagnosed with Bulbar-onset ALS, a signifier of the neurodegenerative illness affecting the cervix and face, successful September 2025 aft experiencing symptoms for much than 2 years.

The Canadian movie shaper was champion known for his enactment connected household affable Disney comedies starting successful the 2000s. Gunn launched his ain accumulation company, Gunn Films, successful 2001 and had an exclusive first-look woody with Walt Disney Pictures.

Among his earliest hits was the 2003 body-swap drama “Freaky Friday,” starring Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan arsenic a mother-daughter duo who aftermath up 1 greeting successful each other’s bodies. The remake was made aft Gunn had pitched the movie to then-studio president Nina Jacobson.

Andrew Gunn, center, with manager Mark Waters, left, and Jamie Lee Curtis connected the acceptable of “Freaky Friday” successful 2003.

(Ron Batzdorff / Disney Entertainment)

“Andrew Gunn ... was a shaper with large passionateness and emotionality which added truthful overmuch to what makes those movies special,” Curtis wrote successful her tribute posted to Instagram connected Wednesday. “His bequest lives on, and helium volition beryllium missed.”

Gunn was besides the shaper connected the 2005 superhero drama “Sky High,” arsenic good arsenic films based connected iconic Disney taxable parkland attractions, including “The Country Bears” (2002) and “The Haunted Mansion” (2003). His astir caller credits see “Cruella” (2021), the fashion-forward root communicative of “101 Dalmations” villain Cruella de Vil, arsenic good arsenic the next-gen sequel “Freakier Friday” (2025).

Born July 15, 1969, successful Toronto, Gunn moved to L.A. to gain a master’s grade from the Annenberg School astatine USC, according to Deadline. He began his Hollywood vocation successful the precocious 1990s, moving astatine John Hughes’ Great Oaks Entertainment wherever helium contributed to the improvement of films specified arsenic “101 Dalmatians” (1996), “102 Dalmatians” (2000) and “Flubber” (1997).

Gunn is besides credited with helping found the Disney Writers Program successful 2001, wherever helium championed and mentored up-and-coming writers.

“Andrew Gunn took a accidental connected a precise greenish 29 twelvemonth aged from obscurity and gave him a screenwriting vocation and much than that…a household successful my adopted city,” said “Clifford the Big Red Dog” writer and Disney Writers Program alum Blaise Hemingway successful his Instagram tribute.

“Andrew fostered a fraternity of writers who did EVERYTHING together,” Hemingway added. “Lunches, Friday movies, blessed hours astatine Mo’s, kid’s day parties. Alongside Andrew, we rewrote, roundtabled, did triage connected productions successful crisis…you sanction it. It was crazy, unhinged, and truthful [f—] fun. And contempt the leather jackets and tattoos, Andrew was a softy who got a footwear retired of his writers’ knuckle-headed antics. He was a large mentor.”

Gunn is survived by his woman Jane; his children Isabelle and Connor Gunn; parent Anne Gunn; and siblings Hilary Knight, Graeme Gunn and Cameron Gunn.