Hollywood producer Stephen Downing has sadly died at the age of 87, his family announced online. The writer’s family announced his death on November 20 following a short battle with sepsis. The producer kick-started his career in Hollywood as a writer, working on shows like Dragnet, Kojak, Emergency, and Walking Tall.
The former police officer also worked as a showrunner for hit shows such as Knight Rider, F/X, and RoboCop: The Series. But it was the beloved 80s action series MacGyver that made him a household name, thanks to his insistence that government agent Angus ‘Mac’ MacGyver would never carry a firearm. Instead, the crime-solving cop rocked a leather jacket and was armed with a dual college degree, creativity and a Swiss Army Knife.
Under Downing’s guidance, storylines that featured on the show included MacGyver protesting alongside Latino farmhands against greedy vineyard owners, conducting research at a school for deaf children, and protecting the endangered Black Rhino. At one point, MacGyver even becomes a vegetarian.
The show was a family operation for Downing, with his wife, Adriene, serving as the show’s publicist, and his daughter, Julie, acting in several episodes, most of which were shot in the heart of Vancouver. Over the decades he spent working in Hollywood, he was responsible for more than 500 hours of television.
But the TV producer didn’t start out with a passion for film and TV; instead, he began life as a commanding officer in the Los Angeles Police Department. Despite working as a policeman, he began moonlighting as a television producer and screenwriter.
It didn’t take long before he became a “passionate activist and investigative journalist” and “an outspoken critic of the war on drugs and the marginalisation of policing”, according to his family. Before he left policing, Downing acted as a whistleblower for the misdeeds of the police departments.
His family wrote that his life was “defined by service – service to family, community, colleagues, and audiences. He combined courage and compassion, a fierce sense of justice with a gentle devotion to those he loved. He will be remembered for his integrity, mentorship, sense of humour, and unwavering commitment to doing what was right.”
The statement continued: “He used his reputation and talents not for preservation of the status quo but to protect others, mentor new generations, and push for systemic change. That combined, steadfast devotion to family, unwavering personal ethics, practical reform, and cultural influence, defines the legacy Stephen Downing leaves behind.”
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