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Matt Villines, 'Saturday Night Live,' 'Funny or Die' director dead at 39

By Wade Sheridan

LOS ANGELES, July 12 (UPI) -- Matt Villines, a noted comedy director who worked on popular sketches for Saturday Night Live and Funny or Die has died at the age of 39.

According to Deadline, Villines died Saturday at his home in Los Angeles following a two-year battle with cancer.

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Villines who made up one half of directing duo Matt and Oz alongside Osmany Rodriguez, helped create some of SNL's more recenet critically-acclaimed comedy sketch hits including "Sad Mouse" starring Bruno Mars, "Uber for Jen" and the Emmy nominated "(Do It On My) Twin Bed."

While at Funny or Die, Villines directed popular shorts "Bridges on Bridges with Beau Bridges." a new version of Bobby Brown's "Every Little Step" music video featuring Mike Tyson and Wayne Brady and "Charlie Sheen's Winning Recipes" starring Sheen himself.

SNL colleagues paid tribute to Villines on social media with the show's co-head writer Bryan Tucker noting on Twitter, "Matt was not only an excellent director. He was a warm, kind guy who got an enormous amount done without ever raising his voice."

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Seth Meyers also added on Twitter "RIP Matt Villines who was a wonderful person and a terrific director." Bobby Moynihan chimed in, stating, "Was lucky enough to get to work with Matt Villines at SNL and I am going to miss him deeply, Wonderful guy."

Villines is survived by his wife Linda, parents and sister.

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