- Hackman was found dead at his Santa Fe home with his wife Betsy Arakawa
- The 95-year-old won two Academy Awards and starred in a string of Hollywood classics
- His career spanned over 40 years, between 1959 and 2004
The news of Gene Hackman and his wife Betsy Arakawa’s passing is currently reverberating around Hollywood, with the couple and their dog tragically found dead at their Santa Fe home, Wednesday afternoon (February 26).
Hackman, a two-time Academy Award winner, was an actor admired by so many that came after and worked alongside him. He could bring a ruthless intensity to his roles, as he did with his Oscar winning turn as NYPD detective Jimmy ‘Popeye’ Doyle in William Friedkin’s The French Connection. But Hackman was also just as adept with comedy, as he proved with performances in Young Frankenstein and as the villainous Lex Luthor in Superman.
Often, unfairly, regarded as an everyman due to not appearing like a typical Hollywood leading man (Hackman once joked that he had been born middle aged), Hackman brought nuanced charm and subtlety to a lot of his roles, such as the patriarchal Royal Tenenbaums in Wes Anderson’s much beloved The Royal Tenenbaums and coach Norman Dale in basketball drama Hoosiers.
Once tagged with the title ‘least likely to succeed’ alongside friend Dustin Hoffman at Pasadena Playhouse in California, Hackman went onto become one of the most revered actors in cinema history, racking up five Academy Award nominations (with two wins) and a filmography most actors can only dream about.
As Hollywood and fans around the world mourn the loss of one of the most irreplaceable, uniquely gifted leading men cinema goers have ever had the luxury of enjoying, here are a collection of Gene Hackman’s finest works to remind yourselves of.
Gene Hackman: His Most Iconic Roles
I Never Sang For My Father (1970)
The performance that delivered Hackman his second Academy Award nomination (Best Supporting Actor) and displayed his emotional depth, as Gene Garrison, a widowed college professor who struggles to communicate his love for his dying father, who he is planning on leaving behind for a new life and wife in California. Opposite the astounding Melvyn Douglas, Hackman’s Garrison is conflicted and broken over his relationship with his father and the news he must break to him, while hopeful of his new life out west. The frustration and sorrow Hackman brings to his role delivers an almost heartbreaking gut punch as the film reaches its crescendo, displaying his almost unparalleled nous for understanding the human nature of his characters.
The French Connection (1971)
Hackman’s first Oscar would arrive a year later, perhaps for his most memorable role, as the no nonsense, street smart NYPD detective Jimmy ‘Popeye’ Doyle. A cop thriller dripping with ’70s style and grit, Hackman commands each scene with the exact right amount of barbarism and desperation. The foul mouthed, womanizing, bigoted Doyle would serve as the archetype for rulebreaking rogue cops for the next 50+ years across cinema and television. Hackman’s naturally gruff demeanour a perfect canvas for him to layer the problematic brushstrokes of Doyle’s character. A performance for the ages.
The Conversation (1974)
Hackman continued his work with the most influential directors of the ’70s, moving on from Friedkin’s French Connection to Francis Ford Coppola’s Neo-noir surveillance thriller The Conversation. As saxophone playing wiretap enthusiast Harry Caul, Hackman is note perfect in his obsessive, paranoia-laden performance. Once again, Hackman breaks our hearts with his Catholic guilt-ridden loneliness as a man simply trying to do the right thing, only in a way in which he is hopelessly in over his head. There is a refinement to Hackman’s Caul that very few actors could bring to the part, when it would be so easy to become too broad with such a character.
Young Frankenstein (1974)
Not a large role by any stretch of the imagination, but just as Hackman was cementing himself as one of the most important leading men of the ’70s, he takes in an extraordinary turn as Harold, the blind man in Mel Brooks chaotic monster comedy Young Frankenstein. Hackman’s scene with the great Peter Boyle is a timeless few minutes of slapstick.
Night Moves (1975)
A criminally under-the-radar Arthur Penn Neo-noir thriller, Night Moves saw Hackman secure a BAFTA nomination for Best Actor in a Leading Role. As retired American football player-turned-LA Private Investigator, Hackman is at his conflicted best once again in this hypnotic psychological thriller. By exploring the depths of the human condition and psyche, Hackman channeled performances that seem almost effortless in their delivery, but were the results of an intense dedication to his craft.
Superman & Superman II (1979, 1980)
Completely left-field from what audiences had come to expect from Hackman, but undeniably hilarious and unforgettable. As Superman’s arch-nemesis Lex Luthor, Hackman is a camp, villainous delight, a million wonderful miles from his ear-to-the-street roles of Popeye Doyle, Harry Moseby and Harry Caul.
Hoosiers (1986)
A beloved performance in a beloved film. A small town sports underdog story for the ages, Hoosiers is an ’80s staple, magnificently anchored by Hackman’s performance as coach Norman Dale. Combining his endearing qualities of loveable complexity, the two-time Oscar winner refuses to belabour the ‘gifted coach with a shady past arriving in a new town’ cliche and instead injects charm and pathos into coach Dale, immortalising him as an icon of sports movies forever more.
The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)
Hackman would retire only three years after his unforgettable performance as Royal Tenenbaum, taking on only two more films. And while he cited health concerns as being the reason why he called it a day in 2004, in 2001, at 71 years of age, Hackman felt as fresh and vital as ever as the eccentric Tenenbaum family patriach in Wes Anderson’s turn of the century classic. Having seen the success the likes of Bill Murray, Anjelica Huston and Jeff Goldblum have enjoyed alongside Anderson over the last 20 years, Hackman could have easily slotted himself into any number of Anderson’s back catalogue and stolen the show. We can only imagine how he may have appeared in The Darjeeling Limited or The Grand Budapest Hotel, but for now, let us remember how undeniably perfect he was as the fictional father of Ben Stiller, Luke Wilson and Gwyneth Paltrow.
Of course, we could keep reeling of legendary titles such as Unforgiven (Hackman’s second Oscar win), Mississippi Burning, the Poseidon Adventure, Reds and Birdcage, but we may never get to the end of this piece. Instead, let’s enjoy the body of work of an actor the likes of which we may never see again.
