GEORGE Takei has led tributes to Gene Hackman after the Hollywood was found dead at his home in New Mexico aged 95. Police in Santa Fe revealed the star was found dead alongside his wife Betsy Arakawa, 63, and their dog on Wednesday. Tributes immediately started flooding in following the news, with celebrities and fans sharing their thoughts on social media.
![[Gene Hackman and his wife Betsy Arakawa at an awards ceremony.]](https://www.the-sun.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2025/02/gene-hackman-wife-betsy-arakawa-975549148.webp?strip=all&w=663)
Star Trek legend George, 87, wrote: “We have lost one of the true giants of the screen. “Gene 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. “That’s how powerful an actor he was. He will be missed, but his work will live on forever.”.
![[LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - JUNE 15: George Takei attends LA Mag PRIDE Brunch at The Abbey on June 15, 2023 in West Hollywood, California. (Photo by Robin L Marshall/Getty Images)]](https://www.the-sun.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2025/02/2q6a2095_0gayialw-JS834503921.jpg?strip=all&w=640)
Comedian Dara O Briain said: "Ah, Gene Hackman. The finest screen actor ever, I think. "Not a single duff performance, in a long, long career. And the best delivery ever of a single word: when he says 'Cigars!' In Young Frankenstein.". Cops have said there are no signs of foul play, per the Santa Fe New Mexican.
![[Gene Hackman at an event.]](https://www.the-sun.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2025/02/actor-gene-hackman-attends-next-967060825.webp?strip=all&w=634)
"All I can say is that we're in the middle of a preliminary death investigation, waiting on approval of a search warrant," Adan Mendoza, the Santa Fe County sheriff said. Police have not revealed a cause of death. Hackman was married twice, tying the knot with Faye Maltese in 1956.
The couple had three children - one son and two daughters. They were married for three decades, divorcing in 1986. He and classical pianist Betsy had been married since 1991. Hackman, born in California in 1930, revealed his dad left the family home when he was 13.
He revealed his dad waved at him when he was playing outside. "It was a real adios," he told Vanity Fair in 2004. "It was so precise. "Maybe that’s why I became an actor. "I doubt I would have become so sensitive to human behavior if that hadn’t happened to me as a child—if I hadn’t realized how much one small gesture can mean.".
