What we know so far about Gene Hackman’s death

Gene Hackman, the legendary Hollywood actor, has been found dead at his home alongside his wife and dog.

Here’s what we know so far.

What happened to Gene Hackman?

Hackman, 95, his wife, 65-year-old Betsy Arakawa, and their dog were found dead at their home in Santa Fe, New Mexico on Wednesday afternoon (US time).

The couple had been dead for some time, according to police, and their bodies were in separate rooms when found by officers responding to a call made by a man describing himself as a caretaker for the estate.

Hackman was found dead in a mud room near the house’s kitchen area, while Arakawa was found dead in a bathroom next to a space heater. There was an open prescription bottle and pills scattered on the countertop near Arakawa.

Gene Hackman and Betsy Arakawa in June 1993.Credit: AP

Arakawa’s body was showing signs of decomposition and mummification in both hands and feet, detective Roy Arndt said in an affidavit filed in the Santa Fe Magistrate Court during an application for a search warrant. Hackman showed similar signs as his wife, Arndt said.

In a 911 call obtained by TMZ, a celebrity news outlet, a man describing himself as a creataker for the estate can urges authorities to send help quickly.

Asked if the couple is awake or breathing, he says;“I have no idea. I’m not inside the house. It’s closed. It’s locked, I can’t go in, but I see them ... she’s laying down on the floor.”

Asked if either Hackman or Arakawa were moving, the caretaker said: “No, dude, they’re not moving. Just send somebody out here really quick.”

What was the cause of death?

Neither Hackman nor Arakawa’s cause of death is yet known. The Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office said there was no immediate sign of foul play, but the deaths were suspicious enough to warrant investigation.

Santa Fe Country Sheriff Adan Mendoza said that Hackman and Arakawa had been dead for “quite a while”, adding that the ensuing autopsies would shed greater light on the length of time between their deaths and discovery.

“It’s not normal to find two people deceased in a residence - that’s concerning,” Mendoza said. “There was also a dog that was in a kennel found deceased, we don’t know the cause of that.”

“There was no indication of a struggle or anything that was missing or disturbed from the home that would be an indication of a crime that had occurred.”

Hackman’s daughter, Elizabeth Jean Hackman, told TMZ the family feared the deaths might have been caused by toxic fumes or carbon monoxide poisoning.

The New Mexico Gas Co tested the gas lines in and around the home after the bodies were discovered, according to Arndt’s affidavit.

At the time, the company didn’t find any signs of problems and firefighters found no signs of a carbon monoxide leak or poisoning. A sheriff’s detective wrote that there were no obvious signs of a gas leak, but he noted that people exposed to gas leaks or carbon monoxide might not show signs of poisoning.

“We had been going in and out of the house, I don’t know if that affects the concentration of any gas including carbon monoxide,” Mendoza said. “That’s yet to be determined.”

While no immediate signs or indications of blunt force trauma have been identified, detectives will seize any weapon, tool or instrument on the property capable of “causing blunt force trauma to the human body”, Arndt said in his affidavit. Police sought to seize “any blunt force objects in the event there is any indication of blunt force trauma” once a possible cause of death was identified, Arndt said.

What movies was he in?

The actor was a veteran stage presence over decades in Hollywood, playing a wide variety of roles. He won two Academy Awards for Best Actor, his first for The French Connection (1971) and his second in Clint Eastwood’s Unforgiven (1992).

Michael Idato, this masthead’s culture editor-at-large, described Hackman as an actor who delivered “illuminating performances which stunned us, made us cry, and, far more often than Hackman’s serious demeanour might suggest, left us weeping in laughter”.

Hackman retired from acting in 2004 after a string of blockbuster roles that also included the films Superman II, The Firm, The Birdcage, Enemy of the State and The Royal Tenenbaums.

Who was his wife?

Arakawa was a gifted classical pianist who married Hackman in 1991.

The couple met at a gym in California during the 1980s, according to The New York Times.

Hackman married Arakawa after divorcing his first wife, Faye Maltese, in 1986.

With AP

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