The late Oscar-winning film director Michael Cimino left $20.6 million in assets and named his widow as the sole beneficiary in his will.
Joan Carelli filed a petition Monday in Los Angeles Superior Court seeking to be named the administrator of her husband’s estate. A hearing is scheduled Sept. 15.
A large part of Cimino’s assets consisted of two apartments in New York City and an 80 percent interest in a limited liability company, according to Carelli’s court papers.
Cimino’s will was created in December 2008.
The body of the 77-year-old Cimino was found July 2 at his Los Angeles home after friends said they were unable to reach him by phone.
In 1979, Cimino won an Oscar and a Golden Globe best director award for the seminal Vietnam film “The Deer Hunter.”
Cimino will be remembered for two late-1970s films that met with drastically opposite receptions.
“The Deer Hunter” — released in 1978 — was an unqualified triumph, winning best picture honors in addition to best director.
Flush with the success of that film, Cimino set off to make the epic western morality tale “Heaven’s Gate.” Released in 1980 by United Artists, the film was more than three times over its budget. The film — which flopped and tarnished Cimino’s reputation in the process — is blamed by many for helping to bring down the studio.
