Quebec director Jean-Marc Vallée has indeed died of natural causes, confirmed Wednesday the coroner responsible for shedding light on his death, which occurred last December.
Jean-Marc Vallée was struck down by a heart attack just after arriving at his chalet in Berthier-sur-Mer, according to the story of coroner Donald Nicole.
“Examination of the scene showed that Mr. Vallée had arrived at his secondary residence in the early evening of December 25, 2021, that he had carried some purchases and personal effects inside, that he had removed part ashes from the slow-burning fireplace located in the dining room of his residence, that he had cleaned the fireplace door and the ash residue on the ground in front of it, but that he had not had time to light a fire in the hearth before his discomfort. »
“He succumbed to a fatal cardiac arrhythmia secondary to severe coronary atherosclerosis”, specifies Donald Nicole in his report.
However, the filmmaker did not have any diagnosed disease likely to be “a risk factor for cardiovascular disease”. It is however “a natural death”, concludes the coroner by ruling out the other hypotheses.
Shock wave
No trace of alcohol or any other substance that could have caused his death was detected in the body of the deceased. No evidence of coronavirus infection was observed. “No sign of violence, theft, break-in or intervention by a third party” was observed at the scene of the death. Finally, “no writing expressing a suicidal intention was found on the spot”, explains the coroner.
We still receive many expressions of friendship, esteem and respect for our father and his work from all over the world. We thank you for this and sincerely hope that his creativity will continue to inspire and guide the members of this industry that has so fascinated him.
It was a friend who made the dark discovery. When he was to join the director on December 26 in the evening, he arrived in a rush at his residence, worried about not receiving an answer from him during the day.
At the time of his death, Jean-Marc Vallée “was lying in the left side position, in front of the hearth, with his cell phone near his hands”, which leads “to presume that he had felt ill and that he may have tried to ask for help” during the last moments of his life, specifies the coroner.
Analysis of the cell phone led to the conclusion that the death occurred before 9:42 p.m., at which time the coroner was able to note notifications and missed calls.
Jean-Marc Vallée lost his life on the evening of December 25, 2021 at the age of 58. The death of the filmmaker behind CRAZY and Dallas Buyers Club sent shockwaves through the artistic community, both here and abroad.
Since the release of his first feature film in 1995, Vallée has inspired many Quebec directors.
His family has saluted the memory of the deceased in a press release and plans to honor his art at an upcoming event. “We still receive many expressions of friendship, esteem and respect for our father and his work from all over the world,” mention his sons, Alex and Émile Vallée. We thank you for this and sincerely hope that his creativity will continue to inspire and guide the members of this industry that has so fascinated him. »