Gene Hackman enraptured fans in his iconic roles ever since he stormed to fame as Buck Barrow in Bonnie and Clyde, kicking off his four-decade long career.
In the 20 years since his shock 2004 retirement, his classic Hollywood repertoire has continued to leave fans in awe as he left quite an impact on the film industry despite starting a new reclusive life out of the spotlight.
Born in California, Los Angeles, on January 30, 1930, Hackman first enlisted in the army after lying about his age at 16, serving for four-and-a-half years before pursuing acting after briefly living in New York.
He quickly established himself as one of the true geniuses of Hollywood and his accolades include two Academy Awards, two BAFTAs, four Golden Globes and a Screen Actors Guild Award.
Appearing in nearly 80 films over 40 years, Hackman was last seen on screen in the 2004 political satire Welcome to Mooseport and has since lived a reclusive life with his wife Betsy Arakawa and he turned 95 in January.
On February 27, police confirmed the married couple were found dead at their Santa Fe home alongside their dog, with local media reporting that no foul play is suspected. No cause of death has been provided.
As Hollywood mourns the loss of the acting great and his beloved wife, lets take a look back at Hackman’s greatest moments on screen.
Gene Hackman established himself as one of the geniuses of Hollywood and his accolades include two Academy Awards and two BAFTAs. He is pictured in The French Connection
Bonnie and Clyde
Hackman was first propelled into the spotlight when he starred as gangster Buck Barrow in 1967’s crime/romance classic Bonnie and Clyde.
The role was offered to him by Warren Beatty, who he had previously worked with on the 1984 film Lilith, in which he secured a minor role.
Starring alongside film legend Warren and Faye Dunaway in the fan favourite release, the role ultimately secured him an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor.
He was nominated alongside his co-star Michael Pollard though the Oscar ultimately went to George Kennedy for his role in Cool Hand Luke.
Though he missed out on the Academy Award, it set up his future successes as it saw him become one of the most sought-after names in Hollywood.
The movie’s director, Arthur Penn, would later observe that Hackman was one of the best at exploiting the early pain in his life.
‘He’s one of the ones who are willing to plunge their arm into the fire as far as it can go,’ he later said.
Hackman enraptured fans in his iconic roles ever since he stormed to fame as Buck Barrow (pictured with Estelle Parsons) in Bonnie and Clyde, kicking off his four-decade career
Starring alongside film legend Warren and Faye Dunaway in the fan favourite release, the role ultimately secured him an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor
The French Connection
When it comes to his most memorable and most iconic movie roles, few can forget his jaw-dropping portrayal of hardboiled detective Jimmy ‘Popeye’ Doyle in The French Connection.
Based on Robin Moore’s 1969 book, the William Friedkin film centres around the the seizure of 246 pounds of heroin smuggled via car on a French ocean liner.
The 1971 epic sees Hackman take on the role of the maverick narcotics agent as he pursues a French drugs dealer – most notably in the famous New York subway chase.
In what is still regarded as one of the finest ever on-screen chases, Popeye hunts down smuggler Alain Charnier (Fernando Rey) during a nail-biting six-minute sequence.
And astonishingly, no mind-bending special effects were used and Hackman was really forced to pursue his co-star down busy streets and crowded subways.
In another unbelievable touch, the whole scene was filmed on streets that had not been blocked off, meaning he was dodging real traffic and pedestrians.
In true method acting tradition, Hackman prepared for the role by accompanying real drug squad detectives on patrol and even held down a suspect during a bust.
While the film saw him achieve stardom, he almost ruined it for himself when the ever temperamental actor walked out on the second day of filming and only returned after the intercession of his agent.
When it comes to his most memorable and most iconic movie roles, few can forget his jaw-dropping portrayal of hardboiled detective Jimmy ‘Popeye’ Doyle in The French Connection
Hackman joked that he was ‘at least the seventh choice’ to play Popeye, but the move certainly paid off as it saw him nab his first ever Oscar (pictured with Philip D’ Antoni
Hackman also joked that he was ‘at least the seventh choice’ to play Popeye, but the move certainly paid off as it saw him nab his first ever Oscar.
Scooping up the Best Actor gong, Hackman looked back at his first ever acting role as he reflected on how far he’d come, soaring to global fame after his humble beginnings.
‘I just want to start at the beginning just for a second and say, sitting out there next to Barbara Harris reminds me of my first acting scene ever,’ he said.
‘It was in New York, and the gentlemen sitting in front of us when we were doing that scene was my acting teacher, and I just have to mention his name: George Morrison. I want to thank him.
‘Also, Mr. Billy Friedkin, who has already received his prize tonight, but I have to thank him because he really brought me through this when I wanted to quit.
‘And Eddie Egan, who you all know, Mr Phil D’Antoni, [and] Roy Scheider, Roy.’
After his historic success, Hackman reprised his iconic role in its sequel, The French Connection II, before Ed O’Neill put his own spin on Hackman’s character in the 1986 television film Popeye Doyle.
The French Connection has continued to be a classic over the years and made headlines in 2023 when it was censored without warning.
The drama, which was available for streaming via the US streaming platform Criterion Channel, had an edited adding in approximately ten minutes into the film.
The scene involves a conversation between Popeye and Buddy ‘Cloudy’ Russo (Roy Scheider) where a racial slur is used.
Disney, who own the rights to the film following its takeover of Fox in 2019, were accused of censoring the scene in the US as it remained unedited on Disney+ in the UK and Canada.
After his historic success, Hackman reprised his iconic role in its sequel, The French Connection II (pictured), before Ed O’Neill put his own spin on Hackman’s character
Unforgiven
Despite never shying away from a punch-up as the top ‘tough guy’ of Hollywood, Hackman initially turned down the part of sadistic sheriff Little Bill Daggett in the 1992 western Unforgiven.
His two daughters had told him that they didn’t like him making so many violent films, with director and star Clint Eastwood battling to change his mind.
And thank goodness he changed his mind, with Hackman excelling in the role and going on to win his second Oscar.
The plot of the revisionist 1880s Western sees gunslinger Will Munny (Clint) return to take on one last job to avenge an injustice, much to the displeasure of Little Bill (Gene), who doesn’t allow vigilantism in his town.
It won four Academy Awards, including for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Film Editing and Best Supporting Actor – which was scooped up by Hackman.
Accepting the award, Hackman gushed: ‘Thank you very much. Quick thanks to David Valdes, our producer, David Peoples, our writer. Oh, boy.
‘All the wonderful actors, Richard Harris, Morgan Freeman, Frances Fisher, and especially to Clint, who kind of made it all possible for me and for everyone else in the film. It was a wonderful experience.
‘I’d like to dedicate my part of this evening to my uncle Orin Hackman. He was a wonderful guy. Thank you very much.’
Despite never shying away from a punch-up as the top ‘tough guy’ of Hollywood, Hackman initially turned down the part of sadistic sheriff Little Bill in the 1992 western Unforgiven
Hackman initially turned down the part of sheriff Little Bill Daggett in the western Unforgiven but was persuaded to take on the role by director and star Clint Eastwood (both pictured)
It won four Academy Awards, including for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Film Editing and Best Supporting Actor – which was scooped up by Hackman
The Poseidon Adventure
With an ensemble cast of five Oscar winners, the 1972 thriller The Poseidon Adventure was set up for success right from the off.
However, Hackman was less than convinced about the nail-biting disaster epic, admitting it wasn’t his favourite film because he thought it would simply ‘come and go’.
‘The Poseidon Adventure is not my favourite film. I thought that it would come and go in a few months,’ he memorably said.
‘But on the other hand, it is my favourite film because it made more money than all the rest of my films put together—and a lot more on top of that.’
Hackman couldn’t have been more wrong from his initial assumption as the adventure movie was anything but fleeting, spawning a string of sequels and remakes.
It has returned to screens many times including in 1979’s Beyond the Poseidon Adventure, 2006’s Poseidon and another series which was made for TV.
Adapted from the novel by Stirling Silliphant and Wendell Mayes, Gene took on the role of Reverend Scott alongside the all-star cast including Shelley Winters, Stella Stevens, Leslie Nielson and Ernest Borgnine.
The disaster film sees the majestic passenger ship S.S. Poseidon battered by a tidal wave which kills the captain, forcing the remaining passengers to fight for survival.
The film also featured a John Williams’ score and the song The Morning After, which won the Oscar in 1973 for Best Original Song.
With an ensemble cast of five Oscar winners, the 1972 thriller The Poseidon Adventure was set up for success right from the off – though Hackman didn’t initially think it would be a hit
The disaster film sees passenger ship, the S.S. Poseidon, battered by a tidal wave which kills the captain, forcing the remaining passengers to fight for survival. Gene is pictured with Shelley Winters
Hackman is pictured (third left) with Stella Stevens, Jack Albertson, Pamela Sue Martin, Arthur O’Connell, Shelley Winters, Carol Lynley, Roddy McDowall, Red Buttons and Ernest Borgnine
A Bridge Too Far
No stranger to portraying hardman police officers, Hackman took on a different kind of officer role in 1977’s star-studded war film A Bridge Too Far.
Playing Major General Sosabowski, Hackman starred alongside Dirk Bogarde, James Caan, Michael Caine, Sean Connery, Laurence Olivier, Anthony Hopkins and Edward Fox.
The three-hour movie, directed by Richard Attenborough, is an account of a disastrous Second World War campaign to control of a series of bridges in Holland and Belgium.
Operation Market Garden was a failed Allied operation in the Nazi-occupied Netherlands in September 1944 and the film’s depiction of the military mission was based on the book by historian Cornelius Ryan.
Although it is one of Hackman’s best-known roles, it was initially released to a tepid critical reception, though it still went on to receive several top awards, sweeping up four gongs at the BAFTA Awards – though Hackman didn’t receive a nod.
The film memorably came under fire for allegedly distorting history, including in its portrayal of Lieutenant-General Frederick ‘Boy’ Browning, commander of the British airborne troops who made the heroic but doomed attempt.
The Browning family claimed it was a ‘re-writing of history’ and lay the sole blame for the failed mission at the door of Browning, who was played by Dirk Bogard.
No stranger to portraying hardman police officers, Hackman took on a different kind of officer role in 1977’s star-studded war film A Bridge Too Far. He is pictured with Ryan O’Neal, Michael Caine, Edward Fox and Dirk Bogarde
Young Frankenstein
In quite the move away from his usual Hollywood hardman roles, Hackman memorably starred in the Mel Brooks-directed Young Frankenstein.
Moving into the comedy/horror genre, he starred as the blind man in the 1974 smash hit movie, while Gene Wilder took on the titular role while Peter Boyle played the monster.
Based on characters in Mary Shelley’s classic novel Frankenstein, the story centres on Frederick Frankenstein (Wilder), the grandson of mad scientist Victor Frankenstein, who inherits the Transylvania estate originally inhabited by Victor.
Young Frankenstein then returns to the old ancestral castle, where he takes up his grandfather’s hobby of reviving corpses with huge zaps of electricity in a bid to prove that Victor wasn’t insane.
Though Hackman’s wild cameo appearance in the cult classic as the unnamed blind man who encounters the monster, his scene went down as one of the best in the movie.
The movie proved to be a box office hit and earned $86.2million from a $2.8million budget and was been revived in a Broadway musical in 2007.
In quite the move away from his usual Hollywood hardman roles, Hackman memorably starred as the blind man in the Mel Brooks-directed Young Frankenstein. Pictured with Peter Boyle as the Monster
Though Hackman’s wild cameo appearance in the cult classic as the unnamed blind man who encounters the monster, his scene went down as one of the best in the movie
Superman
One of the most iconic supervillains in the Superman franchise has to be Lex Luthor, with Hackman putting his own spin on the character in the 1978 film Superman.
Hackman was arguably the person who made the villainous character world-famous as he faced-off with Christopher Reeve’s Superman on the big screen.
His charismatic yet maniacal depiction of Luthor earned him another two movies as he reprised the role in both 1980’s Superman II and Superman IV: The Quest for Peace in 1987.
Though Luthor has been played by a string of actors since – including Kevin Spacey and Jesse Eisenberg – Hackman’s portrayal is regarded by many fans as the best incarnation of the villain.
And it is clear that Hackman loved the role just as much as his fans as he regarded it as the best role in the movie and said he would play Superman for ‘anything’.
‘It’s great fun, I might say it’s like a licence to steal! Almost anything you do is going to be OK because he’s a flamboyant character and deranged and all the things actor love to play,’ he told Terry Wogan in one interview.
‘I wouldn’t want to play the part [of Superman].’
One of the most iconic supervillains in the Superman franchise has to be Lex Luthor, with Hackman putting his own spin on the character in the 1978 film Superman
Hackman was arguably the person who made the villainous character world-famous as he faced-off with Christopher Reeve’s Superman on the big screen
Get Shorty
Though often typecast as the villain or the hardman, Hackman’s foray into comedy after his Young Frankenstein role wasn’t short-lived and he went on to find huge success in the genre.
Entering back into the mobster genre with a comedy twist, Hackman took on the role of hapless movie producer Harry Zimm in the iconic 1995 crime movie Get Shorty.
It stars John Travolta as mobster Chili Palmer, who visits LA in order to collect a debt from Zimm (Hackman) when he realises his business is much like Hollywood and embarks on a dual career as a film producer.
But Hackman’s well-earned reputation for being difficult on set was never clearer than on the set of Get Shorty, with director Barry Sonnenfeld describing him as ‘scary as hell to work with’.
‘He’s very intimidating and suffers no fools,’ Sonnenfeld – who had personally sought out Hackman for the part – confessed.
It certainly wasn’t easy to sign on Hackman for the part either with Danny DeVito – who had been enlisted to persuade him through their shared agent – revealed a stumbling block to getting him on set.
‘There was a night scene in the movie and [Hackman] said he didn’t work at night,’ he told The Guardian.
‘I said: ”It’s only one scene. We’ll do it real quick and get you out by midnight.” He said, ”No, I don’t work at night.” It was a deal breaker.
‘Barry insisted it had to be a night scene, and I eventually convinced Gene to do it but he said: ”You only get one night”.’
DeVito admitted that they ended up running over midnight but Hackman was a ‘good guy’ and stayed on, though the argument-making scene was eventually cut from the movie anyway.
Hackman took on the role of hapless movie producer Harry Zimm in the iconic 1995 crime movie Get Shorty alongside John Travolta as mobster Chili Palmer
Danny DeVito previously told of the efforts he went to persuade Hackman to sign on for the role as he initially refused to do so because he didn’t want to do a night shoot
The Royal Tenenbaums
Hackman also garnered praise for his role in Wes Anderson’s 2001 comedy/drama The Royal Tenebaums, though filming was anything but smooth-sailing.
The Hollywood star, who portrayed Royal Tenebaum, allegedly made it crystal clear that he didn’t like Anderson during filming, with his former co-stars recalling their quarrels.
Back in 2011, Anjelica Huston said Hackman told Anderson to ‘pull up [his] pants and act like a man’, while Noah Baumbach claimed he had dubbed Anderson a ‘c***’ during filming.
Despite being at odds, Anderson insisted he had no regrets at casting Hackman in the star-studded movie and said he enjoyed working with him despite the challenges.
‘He’s a huge force and I really enjoyed working with him. Even though he was very challenging with me, it was very exciting seeing him launch into these scenes,’ he said.
Hackman also starred alongside Hollywood heavyweights including Owen Wilson, Ben Stiller, Bill Murray, Gwyneth Paltrow, Danny Glover and Alec Baldwin, who narrated the film.
Hackman also garnered praise for his role in 2001’s The Royal Tenebaums, though filming was anything but smooth-sailing as he was at odds with director Wes Anderson
Pictured: Cast members Luke Wilson, Gwyneth Paltrow, Gene Hackman, Grant Rosenmeyer, Ben Stiller, Jonah Meyerson, Anjelica Huston, Danny Glover and Kumar Pallana
Retirement
In 2004, he announced that he was done being an actor after his final ever role in Welcome to Mooseport.
Fittingly, the movie followed Hackman as former US president Monroe Cole, who retires to his hometown of Mooseport, Maine.
After moving to try and escape his ex-wife, he then decides to reenter politics to run at the Mayor’s office against another local candidate.
Following the movie’s release, Hackman retired, packed up his things and left Los Angeles for the quiet of New Mexico – never looking back.
Some initially thought that the shocking decision had to do with his marriage.
But the Oscar-award winning actor actually quit acting because of the severe stress he was under, which became too much to handle after he started to have issues with his heart.
He told Reuters in 2008: ‘I haven’t held a press conference to announce retirement, but yes, I’m not going to act any longer.
‘I’ve been told not to say that over the last few years, in case some real wonderful part comes up, but I really don’t want to do it any longer.’
In 2004, he announced that he was done being an actor after his final ever role in Welcome to Mooseport (pictured with Christine Baranski)
After opting for a reclusive life, Hackman and his wife Betsy Arakawa, a 63-year-old classical pianist, were seen out and about for the first time in two decades (pictured)
He also explained his passion for writing novels, saying ‘I like the loneliness of it, actually. It’s similar in some ways to acting, but it’s more private and I feel like I have more control over what I’m trying to say and do.’
‘There’s always a compromise in acting and in film, you work with so many people and everyone has an opinion.… I don’t know that I like it better than acting, it’s just different. I find it relaxing and comforting.’
In 2011, he was asked by GQ if he would ever come out of retirement to do one more film, to which Hackman responded: ‘If I could do it in my own house, maybe, without them disturbing anything and just one or two people.’
He has not stayed completely away from the industry, however, as he has narrated two Marine Corps documentaries: The Unknown Flag Raiser of Iwo Jima (2016) and We, The Marines (2017).
After opting for a reclusive life, Hackman and Betsy, a 63-year-old classical pianist, were seen out and about for the first time in two decades last year.
Hackman was spotted holding onto his wife’s arm for balance as the pair grabbed a bite at Pappadeaux’s Seafood Kitchen in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Before the dinner date, Hackman enjoyed a cup of coffee and some apple pie from a local Speedway store, according to the New York Post.
The couple’s outing marked the first time they were seen together in public for 21 years, with the last time being at the 2003 Golden Globe Awards, where he won the Cecil B. deMille award.
