The Oscar-winning film-maker has died in Los Angeles, leaving behind a career as one of his generation’s most admired talents

• Gallery: Friedkin’s life in pictures

William Friedkin, Oscar-winning director of The Exorcist and The French Connection, has died at the age of 87.

The film-maker died in Los Angeles, confirmed by Chapman University dean Stephen Galloway, a friend of his wife and former producer Sherry Lansing.