Saul Zaentz, the legendary Hollywood producer of “The English Patient,” “Amadeus” and other landmark films, died Friday afternoon from Alzheimer’s disease, his nephew Paul Zaentz told TheWrap. He was 92 years old.
The producer, based in San Francisco, won three Best Picture Oscars, for “The English Patient” in 1996 “Amadeus” in 1985 and “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” in 1975. He was also a producer on the epic “Lord of the Rings” series having acquired certain rights to the novels by J.R.R. Tolkien in 1976.
Zaentz’s last film was “Goya’s Ghosts” in 2005 with director Milos Forman.