Oscar winner Gene Hackman and his wife, Betsy Arakawa, were found dead inside their Santa Fe, New Mexico, home on Wednesday, February 26. Hackman was 95. His wife was 63.
“On February 26, 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,” the Santa Fe County Sherriff’s Office said in a statement to Us Weekly on Thursday, February 27.
“Foul play is not suspected as a factor in those deaths at this time, however, [the] exact cause of death has not been determined. This is an active and ongoing investigation by the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office,” the statement continued.
The Santa Fe New Mexican was first to report the news just after midnight local time Thursday, citing confirmation from Santa Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza.
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ABC News reported that Hackman and Arakawa, a classical pianist, were found dead Wednesday when police conducted a welfare check after a neighbor expressed concern about their wellbeing.
Hackman racked up accolades for his roles in films such as The French Connection and Unforgiven before stepping away from the spotlight.
Born in San Bernadino, California, in January 1930, Hackman served as a marine for five years and studied at the University of Illinois before leaving the college to pursue acting at the Pasadena Playhouse in California. He then worked in the New York theater and ultimately made his Broadway debut in the 1964 production of Any Wednesday. His performance helped him break into the film industry with a role in Lilith later that year.
As his movie career flourished, Hackman earned Academy Award nominations for 1967’s Bonnie and Clyde and 1970’s I Never Sang for My Father. He later won his first Oscar for his portrayal of detective Popeye Doyle in 1971’s The French Connection. Hackman became a highly sought after leading man, appearing in 1975’s Night Moves, 1981’s Reds, 1986’s Hoosiers, 1987’s No Way Out and 1988’s Mississippi Burning (for which he received another Oscar nod). He also showed his range with roles in 1974’s Young Frankenstein and 1978’s Superman.
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Hackman won a second Academy Award for his portrayal of Little Bill Daggett in Clint Eastwood’s 1992 western, Unforgiven. He later starred in 1995’s Get Shorty, 1998’s Enemy of the State, 2001’s The Royal Tenenbaums, 2003’s Runaway Jury and 2004’s Welcome to Mooseport.
In 2004, Hackman revealed in a rare interview that he did not have any upcoming projects in the works. Four years later, he confirmed his retirement from acting, noting that he would only make another film under unique circumstances.
“I don’t know. If I could do it in my own house, maybe, without them disturbing anything and just one or two people,” he told GQ in 2008.
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In a 2020 interview with Empire, Hackman elaborated on his decision to step away from acting. “The straw that broke the camel’s back was actually a stress test that I took in New York,” he explained at the time. “The doctor advised me that my heart wasn’t in the kind of shape that I should be putting it under any stress.”
Hackman married Arakawa in 1991. He is survived by his three children, Christopher, Elizabeth and Leslie, with his late ex-wife, Faye Maltese.
