Oscar-winning actor Gene Hackman and wife Betsy Arakawa found dead at home in Santa Fe, New Mexico
February 27, 2025
Oscar-winning actor Gene Hackman, his wife Betsy Arakawa, and their dog were found deceased at their Santa Fe home. Hackman, known for roles in The French Connection and Unforgiven, passed away at 95.
Oscar-winning US actor Gene Hackman, his wife Betsy Arakawa and their dog have been found dead at their home in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
In a career spanning more than six decades, Hackman received two Academy Awards for his work on the movies The French Connection and Unforgiven.
A statement from the Santa Fe County Sheriff in New Mexico said: “We can confirm that both Gene Hackman and his wife were found deceased Wednesday afternoon at their residence on Sunset Trail.
“This is an active investigation – however, at this time we do not believe that foul play was a factor.”
Hackman was 95, and his wife – a classical pianist – 64.
He won the best actor Oscar for his role as Jimmy “Popeye” Doyle in William Friedkin’s 1971 thriller The French Connection, and another for best supporting actor for playing Little Bill Daggett in Clint Eastwood’s Western film Unforgiven in 1992.
His other Oscar-nominated roles were in the 1967 movie Bonnie and Clyde – as Buck Barrow in his breakthrough role, opposite Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway – and 1970’s I Never Sang for My Father, as well as playing the agent in Mississippi Burning in 1988.
The Santa Fe County Sheriff’s office said: “On 26 February, 2025 at approximately 1:45 p.m., Santa Fe County Sheriff’s deputies were dispatched to an address on Old Sunset Trail in Hyde Park where Gene Hackman, 95 and his wife Betsy Arakawa, 64 and a dog were found deceased.”
Much celebrated actor Hackman played more than 100 roles in total, including supervillain Lex Luthor in the Christopher Reeve-starring Superman movies in the 1970s and 1980s.
Hackman acted opposite many Hollywood heavyweights including Al Pacino in 1973’s Scarecrow, Gene Wilder in 1974’s Young Frankenstein and Warren Beatty and Diane Keaton in 1981’s Reds.
He also starred in the hit movies Runaway Jury, Wes Anderson’s The Royal Tenenbaums and Francis Ford Coppola’s The Conversation.
Coppola led the tributes to the late star on Thursday, calling him “a great artist”. Posting on Instagram he wrote: “Gene Hackman a great actor, inspiring and magnificent in his work and complexity. I mourn his loss, and celebrate his existence and contribution.”
Star Trek actor George Takei posted on X that “we have lost one of the true giants of the screen”.
“Gene Hackman could play anyone, and you could feel a whole life behind it,” he wrote. “He could be everyone and no one, a towering presence or an everyday Joe. That’s how powerful an actor he was. He will be missed, but his work will live on forever.”
Slumdog Millionaire star Anil Kapoor described Hackman as a “genius” performer. “A true legend whose legacy will live on,” he posted.
As well as his Oscar wins, he also collected two Baftas, four Golden Globes and a Screen Actors Guild Award.
He took a comedic turn playing a conservative senator in 1996’s The Birdcage alongside Robin Williams and Nathan Lan, who starred as a gay couple.
His last big screen appearance came as Monroe Cole in Welcome to Mooseport in 2004, after which he stepped back from Hollywood for a quieter life in New Mexico. (BBC)
