Gene Hackman passes away: Edgar Wright, Francis Ford Coppola pay tribute

Oscarwinning actor Gene Hackman and his wife classical pianist Betsy Arakawa were found dead on February 26 in their home in the Santa Fe Summit community According to The Guardian in a statement to the Santa Fe New Mexican County Sheriff Adan Mendoza said ldquoWe can confirm that both Gene Hackman and his wife were found deceased Wednesdayrdquo The Press Association confirmed that there is an ldquoactive investigationrsquorsquo into the deaths Sheriff Mendoza said there was no immediate indication of foul play He did not provide a cause of death or say when the couple might have diedHackman 95 had lived in Santa Fe New Mexico since the 1980s and married Arakawa 63 in 1991 Sheriffrsquos deputies arrived at the couplersquos home to investigate the deaths of two elderly people and a dog The report states that it was unclear whether the deputies were responding to a report of the deaths or if they were making a welfare check at the homeldquoI want to assure the community and neighbourhood that therersquos no immediate danger to anyonerdquo the sheriff added The Santa Fe County Sheriffrsquos office added ldquoWe do not believe foul play was a factor in their deaths however the exact cause of death has not been determined at this timerdquoColleagues remember HackmanAmerican filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola led tributes to Hackman and mourned ldquothe loss of a great artisterdquo ldquoI mourn his loss and celebrate his existence and contributionrdquo Coppola sharedGene Hackman second from left won Best Actor for his role in the 1971 film The French Connection produced by Philip DrsquoAntoni left Jane Fonda and William Friedkin right with their awards PicsAFPFilmmaker Edgar Wright remembered Hackman as ldquothe greatestrdquo while actor and writer George Takai called him ldquoone of the true giants of the screenrdquo ldquoGene Hackman could play anyone and you could feel a whole life behind it He could be everyone and no one a towering presence or an everyday Joe Thatrsquos how powerful an actor he was He will be missed but his work will live on foreverrdquoPresenter Piers Morgan said on social media ldquoGene Hackman was one of the alltime great actors and brilliant at everything he ever did from French Connection and Unforgiven to Mississippi Burning The Conversation and Superman Wersquove lost a giant of the big screenrdquo In a post on X BAFTA said it was ldquosaddenedrdquo to hear of the death of the threetime BAFTA winner and noted his ldquoillustriousrdquo careerAn illustrious careerDespite a late start in his 30s Hackman enjoyed a 40year career in films including performances in Superman 1978 and The Royal Tenenbaums 2001 before he retired in 2004 Hackman secured his first Oscar nomination for Arthur Pennrsquos Bonnie and Clyde 1967 and got his first leading role in 1970rsquos I Never Sang for My FatherHackman during the filming of Target in 1985Among his other notable films were William Friedkinrsquos action thriller The French Connection 1971 which earned him his first Oscar for Best Actor The Poseidon Adventure 1972 A Bridge Too Far 1977 Night Moves 1975 Scarecrow 1973 and Coppolarsquos Palme drsquoOrwinning conspiracy thriller The Conversation 1974 Hackman also won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for the 1993 film UnforgivenHis final film was the 2004 comedy Welcome to Mooseport In 2008 he confirmed his retirement Apart from acting Hackman also worked as an author penning Wake of the Perdido Star which was followed by four other books Hackman also enjoyed painting stunt flying stock car racing and deepsea divingSpeaking to Empire magazine in 2009 Hackman said ldquoI try to take care of myself I donrsquot have a lot of fears I have the normal fear of passing away You know I guess we all think about that especially when you get to be a certain age I want to make sure that my wife and my family are taken care of Other than that I donrsquot have a lot of fearsrdquoThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever