`Bride Wars` director Gary Winick died on Oscar night

Los Angeles: Gary Winick, the director of films like `Letters to Juliet` and `Bride Wars` lost his battle with cancer even as the rest of the film fraternity gathered together for biggest showbiz awards, the Oscars.

The 49-year-old who was also the filmmaker behind `13 Going on 30`, `Charlotte`s Web` and acclaimed indie movie `Tadpole`, believed that he had beaten cancer but the disease struck back, reported New York Times. A spokesman for the director said that many friends and colleagues felt he had beaten his cancer, stating, "It was a battle that we thought he had won and ultimately they just didn`t get it all." Producer Matt Dentler was the one who first brought the knowledge to public, saying Winick is too late to make the Oscar tribute. "Gary Winick died today. Too late to make the Oscars tribute, but way too early. He leaves behind a legacy of supporting indie film and NYC," Dentler wrote on Twitter. The director`s manager Rosalie Swedlin added, "Gary was an incredibly important figure in the indie movement. He will be missed." PTI