His Vietnam-era film - and its famous Russian roulette scene - are regarded as classics of modern American cinema.
Michael Cimino, director of the Oscar-winning 1978 film The Deer Hunter, has died aged 77.
Starring Robert De Niro and Christopher Walken, the movie tells the tale of how the Vietnam War scars the lives of a group of friends from small-town Pennsylvania.
A scene where the pair are forced to play Russian roulette has become one of cinema's most iconic.
The film was a critical triumph, winning five Oscars, including best director, best picture and best supporting actor for Walken.
De Niro and Meryl Streep also got acting nominations.
The director's friend and former lawyer Eric Weissmann told The New York Times police had found his body at his home after friends were unable to reach him by phone.
Cimino's death was also confirmed by Los Angeles County acting coroner's lieutenant B Kim.
It is not yet known how he died.
"Our work together is something I will always remember. He will be missed," said De Niro in a statement on Saturday.
Despite the success of The Deer Hunter, Cimino's follow-up tanked at the box office.
Heaven's Gate - a Western set in 1890s Wyoming - came in at more than three times over budget and was more than three-and-a-half hours long.
Variety magazine said the film was "synonymous with showbiz disaster", but Cimino stood by the film.
He told Variety in 2010: "I never second-guess myself. You can't look back. I don't believe in defeat. Everybody has bumps, but as Count Basie said, 'It's not how you handle the hills, it's how you handle the valleys'."
Cimino became an eccentric figure in later life, living alone in Beverly Hills, frequently changing his appearance and claiming allergies to alcohol and sunshine.
The director worked sporadically after the Heaven's Gate flop and made only four other films: Year of the Dragon (1985), The Sicilian (1987), Desperate Hours (1990) and The Sunchaser (1996).
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