Film-maker George Hickenlooper died from an accidental overdose after taking a prescription painkiller with alcohol, a coroner has ruled.
The 47-year-old director of films such as Factory Girl and the acclaimed Apocalypse Now documentary Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse, died suddenly in Denver last month. At the time it was reported that he had suffered a heart attack.
However, the Denver medical examiner's office said yesterday that Hickenlooper, who had been in the city to promote his latest film, died after taking ethanol and oxymorphone, which affected his central nervous system and breathing. The coroner said an autopsy found the director had a "moderately enlarged" heart, which, when combined with his sleep apnea, were "significant contributing factors to death".
Actors such as Kevin Spacey, who stars in Casino Jack, Hickenlooper's final film, expressed their regret following the director's death. The film-maker had been attending the Starz Denver film festival.
"It is with great sadness that I have to even think about writing about George in this way," said Spacey at the time. "I can't believe he's gone because George was so alive, bubbling with energy, drive, commitment, an open heart and a brilliant sense of humour. He was one of a kind."
As well as Factory Girl, his 2006 film about a love triangle between Bob Dylan, Andy Warhol and 1960s actor and socialite Edie Sedgwick, Hickenlooper received praise for his 1991 making-of documentary Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse. It won a number of awards, with Hickenlooper himself picking up an Emmy for direction.