Gregory Allen Howard, the screenwriter who wrote Harriet and Remember the Titans, died in Miami on Friday.
The news was confirmed by his rep Jeff Sanderson, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
It came after Howard battled a brief illness. He was 70 years old.
Sad Loss: Gregory Allen Howard, the screenwriter who wrote Harriet and Remember the Titans, died in Miami on Friday
Howard moved to Los Angeles in the ’90s to pursue his dream of becoming a screenwriter.
Originally from Norfolk, Virginia, the talented author rose to fame in the early 2000s after writing the Denzel Washington-directed film Remember the Titans.
The true story follows Herman Boone, an African American football coach tasked with coaching a high school team during their first racially integrated season in the sport in 1971.
The film earned him the distinction of being the first African-American screenwriter to write a $100 million screenplay for a drama, Variety reported.
A dream come true: Howard dreamed for two decades of bringing the action-adventure film Harriet to life; pictured with movie star Cynthia Erivo in 2019
Howard, who earned a bachelor’s degree in American history from Princeton University, dreamed of bringing the action-adventure film Harriet to life for two decades.
The idea came to him after studying the historical figure during his time at Princeton.
The film, starring Cynthia Erivo, Leslie Odom Jr. and Janelle Monae, was nominated for two Academy Awards.
In a 2019 interview with Focus Features, the writer-producer said of the feature film, “To me, this film is my valentine to black women. I wanted them to go to the cinema on Saturday and see this young black woman take on this incredible power structure and triumph over it.
Distinguished: During his career, he won two NAACP Image Awards, the Howard University Paul Robeson Award for Outstanding Artistic Achievement and the Heartland Film Festival Award for Outstanding Screenwriter; Pictured in 2001
How it all began: After studying with Harriet Tubman at Princeton University, the author was inspired to write the screenplay
Gregory also earned a screenwriter for the film Ali, which stars Will Smith and Jamie Foxx.
During his career he has won two NAACP Image Awards, the Howard University Paul Robeson Award for Artistic Excellence and the Heartland Film Festival Award for Outstanding Screenwriter.
Howard is a long-time contributor to the Huffington Post, writing The Biggest Loser in 2016 and The Whitewashing of James Brown in 2017.
His most recent work was the civil rights project Power to the People, written for producer Ben Affleck and Paramount Pictures.
At the time of his death, Howard was working on a biopic about quarterback Marlin “The Magician” Briscoe titled “The Magician”.
Impressive: Gregory also earned a screenwriter for the film Ali, which stars Will Smith and Jamie Foxx
He is survived by sister Lynette Henley and brother Michael Henley, nieces Robyn Bacon and Valencia Kamara, and nephew Robert Henley.
Howard is also survived by a great-niece and two great-nephews, as well as cousins Pierre Gatling and the Honorable Patricia Cole, Deadline reported.
He was predeceased by siblings Camille Cole Howard and brother Ricardo J. Henley
Breakout: Originally from Norfolk, Virginia, the talented author rose to fame in the early 2000s after writing the Denzel Washington-directed film ‘Remember the Titans.’