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Gene Hackman and his wife, Betsy Arakawa, were each found dead with their dog at their Latest Mexico home on February 26, 2025. The late movie star and the pianist had been married since 1991. Hackman, 95, and Arakawa, 65, were discovered under mysterious circumstances, which initially left many concerned, especially with reports concerning the “mummification” of Arakawa. As authorities investigated, they didn’t immediately confirm the explanation for death or provide further details. Nevertheless, in a March 7 press conference, authorities officially identified the explanation for death for the couple.
Below, we’re breaking down what we all know to this point about Hackman and his wife’s deaths.
Gene Hackman’s Movies & TV Shows
Hackman was known for a wide range of film and tv roles, but amongst his hottest were The French Connection, Unforgiven, Bonnie & Clyde, I Never Sang for My Father, Superman, Superman II and Mississippi Burning.
Amongst Hackman’s other popular roles were in The Poseidon Adventure, The Conversation, Loose Cannons, The Quick and the Dead, The Birdcage, Enemy of the State, Behind Enemy Lines, Runaway Jury and Welcome to Mooseport.
After wrapping Welcome to Mooseport, Hackman retired from acting and ventured into writing. The Academy Award winner published several books, including Wake of the Perdido Star, Justice for None, Escape From Andersonville and Pursuit.
What Happened to Gene Hackman & His Wife Betsy?
While police initially said they didn’t suspect foul play, TMZ obtained a search warrant, which revealed that a Sante Fe detective called Hackman and Arakawa’s deaths “suspicious.”
Sante Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza released a press release on the time of discovering the couple to the Santa Fe Latest Mexican, via The Guardian, which read, “We are able to confirm that each Gene Hackman and his wife were found deceased Wednesday.”
The Guardian reported that deputies arrived at Hackman’s home within the Santa Fe Summit gated community often known as Old Sunset Trail. Nevertheless, it’s unclear if cops got here to the home to research a death report or in the event that they were performing a welfare check.
In Mendoza’s initial report, police discovered an elderly man and his wife in her 60s dead. He told the general public in a press release, “I would like to guarantee the community and neighborhood that there’s no immediate danger to anyone. We don’t imagine foul play was a consider their deaths; nevertheless, exact explanation for death has not been determined presently.”
The sheriff added, “All I can say is that we’re in the course of a preliminary death investigation, waiting on approval of a search warrant.”
Nevertheless, in keeping with a search warrant obtained by TMZ, an area detective wrote in his affidavit that the “death of the 2 deceased individuals to be suspicious enough in nature to require a radical search and investigation since the reporting party found the front door of the residence unsecured and opened, deputies observed a healthy dog running loose on the property, one other healthy dog near the deceased female, a deceased dog laying 10-15 feet from the deceased female in a closet of the toilet, the heater being moved, the pill bottle being opened and pills scattered next to the feminine, the male decedent being positioned in a separate room of the residence, and no obvious signs of a gas leak.”
The outlet further reported that the deputy noticed an opened prescription pill bottle on the countertop near Arakawa, and her body was in a press release of decomposition with facial “bloating” and “mummification in her hands and feet.” Hackman was discovered dead in one other room fully clothed, and cops suspected he had fallen because his sunglasses were found next to him.
Gene Hackman’s Reason behind Death
After news of Hackman’s death first broke, social media users speculated that carbon monoxide poisoning might need been the cause, especially given reports that there was no foul play and that Hackman, his wife Arakawa, and their dog were found dead. Nevertheless, in keeping with a search warrant obtained by TMZ, a detective noted that there have been “no obvious signs of a gas leak” in Hackman’s home.
Over every week after their deaths, the causes of death for Hackman and Arakawa were revealed, in keeping with E! News. The outlet reported that surveillance footage of Arakawa is believed to have died on February 11, 2025, and her explanation for death was hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, which is a severe respiratory illness transmitted through rodent urine, droppings, and saliva. Nevertheless, recent information emerged on March 16, indicating that Arakawa’s death likely occurred a bit of later, because it was revealed she made a call on February 12.
Dr. Josiah Child, a former emergency care specialist and now the owner of Cloudberry Health in Santa Fe, Latest Mexico, told The Day by day Mail: “Mrs Hackman didn’t die on February 11 because she called my clinic on February 12. She’d called me a few weeks before her death to ask about getting an echocardiogram [heart scan] for her husband. She was not a patient of mine, but certainly one of my patients really useful Cloudberry to her. She made an appointment for herself for February 12. It was for something unrelated to anything respiratory.”
Dr. Child added that two days before the appointment, Arakawa canceled, citing her husband’s illness. “She called back on the morning of February 12 and spoke to certainly one of our doctors who told her to are available in that afternoon,” Dr. Child said. “We made her an appointment but she never showed up. She didn’t show any symptoms of respiratory distress. The appointment wasn’t for anything related to hantavirus. We tried calling her a few times with no reply.”
Hackman’s pacemaker last showed activity on February 18, in keeping with the medical investigator, suggesting he “probably died around February 18.” The investigator also noted that Hackman was in “a really poor state of health” on the time of his death and believes his heart disease likely contributed to his passing. His explanation for death was determined to be hypertensive and atherosclerotic heart problems (ASCVD)—or hardening of the arteries—with Alzheimer’s disease as a major contributing factor.
As for the couple’s deceased dog, a report revealed that the canine likely died from dehydration and starvation.
