As fans of Apple TV+’s The Morning Show await updates on Season 3, star and executive producer Jennifer Aniston shared some heartbreaking news about a member of the crew. Gunnar Mortensen, who was a camera assistant on the workplace drama for the first two seasons and whose career spanned over a decade as a crew member on a number of other projects, died in a motorcycle accident on July 4 at the age of 39. Aniston was among those to pay their respects to Mortensen, sharing kind words and a link to help his family through donations.
Erik Gunnar Mortensen, a resident of Idyllwild in Southern California, was killed when his 2019 Harley-Davidson crashed on the eastbound side of the two-lane Highway 74 between Hemet and Mountain Center, in an area known as Bee Canyon, according to news reports. He leaves behind a wife and a 2-year-old son. Jennifer Aniston shared photos of Mortensen with his family on Instagram Stories while mourning her colleague’s death. The text on her post read:
This past week we suddenly and tragically lost Gunnar Mortense. One of the bright lights on our The Morning Show set. As camera assistant, he was so skilled and dedicated to his job. In memory of Gunnar, a page has been set up to help raise funds for his wife, Keely, and his 2-year-old son, Lars, during this difficult time. We are going to miss you, Gunnar.
Jennifer Aniston included a link to a GoFundMe page to benefit Keely and Lars, which as of this writing, had collected over $130,000. No other vehicles were involved in Gunnar Mortensen’s wreck, and officials were investigating what caused the motorcyclist to crash.
As well as serving as camera assistant on Seasons 1 and 2 of The Morning Show, Gunnar Mortensen’s career behind the camera spanned more than a decade and included two seasons of Transparent (available with an Amazon Prime Video subscription), the intense and weird Chris Pine limited series I Am the Night, The Rookie, Showtime’s I’m Dying Up Here, Sons of Anarchy, and The Real World. He also was part of the crew on movies including Yes Day, Hubie Halloween, and Chasing Mavericks.
His latest project featured The Morning Show star and EP Reese Witherspoon alongside Ashton Kutcher in the romantic comedy Your Place or Mine. You can see Jennifer Aniston's Instagram post below:
Gunnar Mortensen may have been behind the camera, but he was a part of projects that have been enjoyed by millions, and as evidenced by Jennifer Aniston’s sweet post, he will be sorely missed by those who worked with him over the years. Many of the TV shows and movies he served on the crew for are available for streaming, including The Morning Show’s first two seasons, which can be accessed with a subscription to Apple TV+.
Here at CinemaBlend, our condolences go out to the family and friends of Gunnar Mortensen, particularly his wife Kelly and son Lars, during this terrible time.
