Dwayne McDuffie has died.
Update 2: Comic Book Resources is reporting that Dwayne McDuffie "died from complications due to a surgical procedure performed Monday evening."
Update 1: DC Entertainment co-publisher Dan DiDio has released a statement on McDuffie's passing:
“Dwayne McDuffie left a lasting legacy on the world of comics that many writers can only aspire to. He will not only be remembered as the extremely gifted writer whose scripts have been realized as comic books, in television shows and on the silver screen, but as the creator or co-creator of so many of the much-loved Milestone characters, including Static Shock. The industry has lost a true talent.
Our sincerest condolences go out to the family and many friends he leaves behind.”
Original Story: Writer Dwayne McDuffie, famous for his creation of Milestone and runs on Justice League in both comics & animation, has passed away. No cause of death or exact details have been released, but the creator's death has been confirmed by multiple independent sources.
McDuffie was the co-founder of Milestone Media, a coalition of African-American writers and artists formed with fellow creators Denys Cowan, Michael Davis and Derek T. Dingle in 1993, whose output was published through DC Comics. Characters he co-created through that imprint include Static (who inspired the 2000-2004 animated series Static Shock) and Icon.
McDuffie worked extensively in the field of animation, as a writer for Static Shock and also Justice League and Ben 10: Alien Force. He contributed the screenplay to 2010's DC Animated feature Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths, and his latest project, the direct-to-video animated All-Star Superman film, went on sale today.
As a comic writer, McDuffie had runs on high-profile Marvel and DC Comics titles in recent years, including Fantastic Four, Justice League of America and the six-issue Marvel miniseries Beyond. His earlier comic book work includes co-creating and writing several miniseries of Damage Control, about a construction company that repairs property damage resulting from superpowered conflicts in the Marvel Universe.
Along with co-writer Alan Burnett, McDuffie won a Humanitas Prize for children's animation in 2003 for the "Jimmy" episode of Static Shock, dealing with gun violence.
McDuffie made a public appearance at the Paley Center in Los Angeles promoting All-Star Superman on Thursday, Feb. 17, of last week, and posted on his Facebook account as recently as Sunday afternoon. More as it comes in.