VIDEO : Director Curtis Hanson Passes Away at 71

Director Curtis Hanson, who won a screenwriting Oscar for the film ?L.A. Confidential? and also helmed the psychological thriller ?The Hand That Rocks the Cradle? as well as the Detroit hip-hop movie ?8 Mile,? has died at the age of 71. According to Los Angeles police spokesman Tony Im, paramedics declared Hanson dead at his Hollywood Hills home on Tuesday afternoon. Im added that Hanson died of natural causes, but did not have further details. Rapper Eminem, who starred in 8 Mile, released a statement after Hanson's passing, saying, " Curtis Hanson believed in me and our crazy idea to make a rap battle movie set in Detroit. He basically made me into an actor for ?8 Mile.? I?m lucky I got to know him.?