Filmmaker Morgan Spurlock, Who Challenged the Fast Food Industry, Passed Away at 53

According to several media outlets, filmmaker Morgan Spurlock, who made the film, "Super Size Me," passed away at 53 after battling cancer. 

"Super Size Me" received an Oscar nomination after Spurlock chronicled the physical and psychological changes he experienced after eating only "super-sized" portions of McDonald's food daily for a month. He was restricted from consuming any other type of food for 30 days. At the end of the 30-day experiment, the director claimed he was in poor physical and psychological health. Spurlock said he put on 25 pounds in a month, felt depressed, and damaged his liver. 

The film aimed to show the damaging results of consuming fast food, especially on a daily basis. "Super Size Me" also called out the fast food industry for encouraging consumers to have a poor diet. Shortly after the movie's release, McDonald's discontinued its super-size option. 

Spurlock leaned towards thought provocation; he produced other projects centered around different issues, such as the U.S. war in Afghanistan ("Where In the World Is Osama Bin Laden?"), minimum wage, and immigrant labor ("30 Days"); consumer susceptibility to marketing (The Greatest Movie Ever Sold"); trophy hunting and body modification ("7 Deadly Sins"); elder care and gambling ("Morgan Spurlock Inside Man") and corporate pressure on family farms ("Super Size Me 2: Holy Chicken!"), according to Variety.

Variety obtained a statement from his brother, Craig Spurlock, regarding his passing, which reads, "It was a sad day, as we said goodbye to my brother Morgan." He continued, "Morgan gave so much through his art, ideas, and generosity. Today, the world has lost a true creative genius and a special man. I am so proud to have worked together with him."

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