- Screen icon Gene Hackman has passed away aged 95
- The star leaves behind a hefty screen career
- How many Oscars did Gene Hackman win – and for which roles?
Legendary actor Gene Hackman has sadly passed away at the aged of 95.
Hackman was found dead at his New Mexico home on 26 February alongside his wife, the retired classical pianist, Betsy Arakawa. Arakawa was 67 years old. The family dog was also found at the scene.
While the details surrounding the trio’s passing remains unclear what we do know is that Hackman was one of the greatest actors of his time.
Read more: Gene Hackman found dead at his New Mexico home
Born in California in 1930, he caught the acting bug at a young age. However, a stint in the military temporarily brought him to China, Hawaii and Japan.
Upon his return to America in 1951, Hackman doubled-down on his desire to act and began a screen career that would span almost 50 years. These five decades saw him star in over 100 different projects on the big and small screen.
Gene Hackman Oscar wins
However, it was his prowess as a movie star that really connected with viewers.
Simultaneously stern yet delicate and full of a dry humor that lurked just beneath the surface, Hackman delivered memorable performances alongside the likes of Dustin Hoffman, Clint Eastwood and even Superman himself.
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It’s no surprise that his talents won him plenty of awards, including a handful from the Academy – but which movies did Hackman win Oscars for?
Let’s take a look.
Gene Hackman’s Oscar winning roles
Hackman won two Academy Awards in his lifetime for two movies that were released more than 20 years apart.
His first win was in the Best Actor category for 1972’s gritty crime drama The French Connection.
Directed by The Exorcist’s William Friedkin, this Neo-noir saw Hackman star alongside Jaws actor Roy Schneider as Jimmy “Popeye” Doyle, a New York detective who’s trying to track down a French heroin smuggler.
The role not only won Hackman an Academy Award, it also bagged him a BAFTA and a Golden Globe.
21 years later, Hackman repeated the same trio of wins by starring in Eastwood’s 1993 Western Unforgiven. This time he won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor.
Eastwood’s return to the Western saw him play with his own screen image as an aging gunslinger forced out of retirement up against his own past. Here, Hackman plays corrupt sheriff “Little” Bill Daggett.
While these two roles remain Hackman’s sole Academy wins, he was also nominated numerous times.
His first nod was in the Best Supporting Actor category for 1968’s Bonnie & Clyde. He had repeated success in the same category for 1971’s I Never Sang For My Father. He was also nominated for Best Supporting Actor a third time for 1989’s race drama Mississippi Burning.
