Jennifer Aniston mourns the ‘sudden’ death of The Morning Show camera assistant

Jennifer Aniston has paid tribute to The Morning Show camera assistant Erik Gunnar Mortensen after he ‘suddenly’ died following a motorcycle crash.

The actress, 53, took to her Instagram Stories on Thursday to pay her respects to her late colleague, who she described as ‘skilled and dedicated to his job’.

Gunnar died at the age of 39 on Monday in a motorcycle accident on Highway 74 in California, which is under investigation by the California Highway Patrol.

He was rushed to Hemet Global Medical Center after the incident and died around one hour later at 7.47pm, according to the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department.

Taking to Instagram on Thursday, Jennifer shared an emotional tribute to Gunnar, who she described as ‘one of the bright lights’ on the set of The Morning Show, where she stars as Alex Levy.

She penned: ‘This past week we suddenly and tragically lost Gunnar Mortensen. One of the bright lights on our @themorningshow 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 fund for his wife Keely, and his two-year-old son Lars during this difficult time. We are going to miss you, Gunnar.’

Loss: The actress, 53, took to her Instagram Stories on Thursday to pay her respects to her late colleague, who is survived by his wife Keely, and his two-year-old son Lars

She also shared a link to a GoFundMe page to raise funds for Gunnar’s family, which has already raised $128,805 (£107,800), surpassing its $20,000 (£16,000) goal in just two days.

The fundraising page was set up by Local 600, which represents camera professionals and Gunnar was a member of the group for 13 years, according to Variety.

A description on the page read: ‘Local 600 mourns the passing of Gunnar Mortensen, a camera assistant who died on Monday, July 4, from injuries sustained from a motorcycle accident. Gunnar is survived by his wife, Keely, and his 2-year-old son, Lars.

‘In memory of Gunnar, Local 600 has set up this GoFundMe page to help raise funds for his family at this difficult time. We encourage you to donate if you can.’

Gunnar reportedly served on the National Executive Board of the International Cinematographer’s Guild (ICG) since 2013 and was also the co-chair of the Active Engagement Committee since 2017.

Paying tribute to him, Rebecca Rhine, national executive director of the ICG, told Variety: ‘Gunnar was happiest when sharing stories and pictures of his family. He found the joy and humor in everything and showed us how to follow the guiding light of kindness and laughter.

‘He left us way too soon. We will carry his spirit forward in his name.

According to Gunnar’s IMBD page, he worked as a camera assistant on projects including Homecoming: A Film by Beyoncé, Lorde’s Green Light music video, Yes Day and Hubie Halloween.

Since 2007, he has worked on a total of 81 different projects after finding a love for filmmaking when he saw a camera truck drive past him for 1992’s Ladybugs. He began his career filming car commercials in Denver before moving to Los Angeles.

Gunnar was also one of the founding members of the Society of Focus Technicians, which is now an internationally recognized group, according to IMDB.

‘We are going to miss you’: Jennifer described Gunnar as ‘one of the bright lights’ on the set of The Morning Show, where she stars as Alex Levy (pictured in 2019)