Film director Tony Scott left notes in his car and office before plunging to his death from the Vincent Thomas Bridge in San Pedro, Calif., a Los Angeles County coroner official said Monday.

Scott, best known for the films "Top Gun" and "Beverly Hills Cop II," apparently committed suicide by jumping from the bridge about 12:30 p.m. Sunday, said Lt. Joe Bale of the coroner's office.

"There's nothing to indicate it is anything else at this time," Bale said.

A friend found a note from Scott, 68, in his Los Angeles office, apparently written for his family, Deputy Chief Coroner Ed Winter said. A note left in his car on the bridge including names and phone numbers for his family was probably intended for officials investigating his death, Winter said.

The bridge spans Los Angeles Harbor, connecting San Pedro and Terminal Island.

A passerby who saw Scott jump from the bridge called 911, according to a statement released by the coroner's office late Sunday.

"The L.A. Port Police recovered the body from the water," the statement said.

Born Anthony D.L. Scott in North Shields, England, in 1944, he got his start as a teenager in front of the camera, starring in his older brother Ridley Scott's film "Boy and Bicycle." In 1995, the two joined forces to create the production company Scott Free Productions.

Simon Halls, a publicist who represents the Scott brothers, confirmed the death.

Tony Scott became a household name in 1986 as director of the mega-hit "Top Gun," starring Tom Cruise and Kelly McGillis. He followed that up with the Eddie Murphy action movie "Beverly Hills Cop II" in 1987.

Both Cruise and Murphy released statements mourning the loss of their director.

"Tony was my dear friend and I will really miss him. He was a creative visionary whose mark on film is immeasurable. My deepest sorrow and thoughts are with his family at this time," said Cruise.

Murphy described Scott as a "wonderful collaborator" and said he will be missed.

Pepperdine University film professor Craig Detweiler called Scott "the supreme stylist" who "operated at the top of his game throughout each decade of his career."

"He was able to make the thinnest of premises into something pulse-pounding and exciting and he's almost a filmmaker as a magician who found drama amidst almost contrived situations," Detweiler said.

Taking his own life by jumping from a bridge is "a high-adrenaline ending, which matches his dramatic style," he said.

"He put Denzel Washington, Will Smith and Tom Cruise in movies where one man overcomes all struggles, triumphs over struggles, and yet it appears he was not able to write that story for himself," he said.

Actor Michael Rapaport, who was directed by Scott in "True Romance," took to Twitter to praise the director. In one post, he said there hasn't been a day since the movie was released in 1993 that someone doesn't tell him how much they loved the film.

"Tony Scott was a sweet enthusiastic & lovin man," Rapaport wrote.

Scott cemented his reputation for big-budget action films with 1990's "Revenge" starring Kevin Costner and "Days of Thunder" with Cruise. In 1998, he directed "Enemy of the State" with Will Smith and Gene Hackman.