William Friedkin, Oscar-winning director of 'The French Connection,' dead at 87

• William Friedkin is known best for directing "The French Connection" and "The Exorcist."
• Friedkin won the best director Oscar for his work on "The French Connection."

William Friedkin, the legendary director known for 1970s landmark movies like "The French Connection" and "The Exorcist," died Monday in Los Angeles at the age of 87.

His death was confirmed by Chapman University dean Stephen Galloway, a friend of Friedkin's wife Sherry Lansing, according to Variety. No cause has been given.

Part of the "New Hollywood" movement that infiltrated Hollywood at the beginning of the 1970s, Friedkin's hard-edged style earned him auteur status before the decade was over.

Friedkin won the best director Oscar for his gritty police drama 1971's "The French Connection," which made Gene Hackman into a star. Hackman earned the best actor Oscar for his performance in the film as a detective tracking a drug smuggler through the streets of New York City.

Friedkin then released 1973's "The Exorcist," which follows a young girl possessed by the devil who needs to be saved by two priests. The movie became a box-office sensation and a horror classic.

Other memorable titles from his filmography include the 1980s thriller "Cruising," starring Al Pacino, and another police drama, 1985's "To Live and Die in L.A."