Gene Hackman, his wife Betsy Arakawa and his dog found dead

Oscar-winning American actor Gene Hackman, along with his wife and their dog, was discovered deceased at their residence.

On Thursday, February 27, the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office in New Mexico reported the tragic news of the deaths of actor Gene Hackman, aged 95, and his wife, pianist Betsy Arakawa, who was 63 years old. They were discovered in their home. The cause of their deaths remains unconfirmed; however, it seems there is no indication of foul play, as reported by the spokeswoman to the American network CNN.

Gene Hackman took to acting later in his life, yet he made an indelible impression on Hollywood, delivering memorable performances in The French Connection (1971), which garnered him the Oscar for best actor, as well as in Mississippi Burning (1988) and Unforgiven (1992).

Born on January 30, 1930, in San Bernardino, California, this American actor first graced the screen at the age of 34 in Robert Rossen’s Lilith, alongside Jean Seberg and Warren Beatty. It was the former who subsequently put his name forward to director Arthur Penn for his inaugural significant role in the iconic film Bonnie and Clyde in 1967. The moment had arrived for Hackman to receive his inaugural nomination – for best supporting actor – at both the Oscars and the Golden Globes.

His career took off. Shortly thereafter, he would take on two pivotal roles that would etch themselves into the annals of American cinema: the morally ambiguous policeman Jimmy “Popeye” Doyle in William Friedkin’s The French Connection (1971), a performance that garnered him both an Oscar and a Golden Globe, and the reticent investigator in Francis Ford Coppola’s The Conversation in 1974. “When I see myself on screen, I see my grandfather,” remarked the American actor, whose laid-back demeanor enabled him to carve out a niche in the burgeoning cinematic landscape of the 1970s.”

Gene Hackman had ventured into comedy with Mel Brooks’ Junior Frankenstein in 1974 before gaining broader recognition for his portrayal of Lex Luthor in Richard Donner’s Superman in 1978. Once more, he appears in an inquiry titled Mississippi Burning – The Roots of Hate, portraying a federal agent employing unconventional tactics. The film earned him another Oscar nomination.

In the early 1980s, Gene Hackman faced a challenging phase, primarily taking on supporting roles. However, he successfully revitalized his career with his portrayal of coach Norman Dale in David Anspaugh’s The Big Show (1986), a film that achieved significant commercial success in the United States.

This was succeeded by his portrayal of the cruel sheriff in Clint Eastwood’s western Unforgiven (1992), a performance that garnered him his second Oscar. During the 1990s, Gene Hackman appeared to be at the pinnacle of his career, maintaining his appeal among a new generation of actors. He shared the screen with Tom Cruise in Sydney Pollack’s The Firm (1993), alongside Sharon Stone, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Russell Crowe in Sam Raimi’s The Quick and the Dead (1995), and with Will Smith in Tony Scott’s Enemy of the State (1998).

In the twilight of his career, the actor once more garnered both public and critical praise, particularly for his performances in Wes Anderson’s The Royal Tenenbaums (2001) and Gary Fleder’s The Game Master (2003), where he shared the screen with his longtime friend Dustin Hoffman.

Gene Hackman was notably reserved, granting only a handful of interviews to the media and rarely engaging with the insular realm of Hollywood. In Hollywood, cinema is the very heartbeat of existence: it shapes the dialogues, influences the faces you encounter, and permeates daily life. It’s utterly self-absorbed. “You ultimately lose sight of the reasons behind your profession,” he remarked to L’Express in 2000.

Gene Hackman declared his retirement in 2004 following the completion of Donald Petrie’s Welcome to Mooseport. The actor, therefore, aimed to dedicate himself to his other passion: writing. The gentleman indeed penned three historical fiction novels alongside the underwater archaeologist Daniel Lenihan before embarking on a solo venture with two new novels in 2011 and 2013.