Earlier, we reported that Gene Hackman, one of Hollywood's greatest actors, passed away at the age of 95 on Wednesday. Hackman was found dead at his Santa Fe house, alongside his pianist spouse Betsy Arakawa and their dog. Law enforcement is yet to find out the reason for their deaths. Meanwhile, some of the prominent names in the film industry paid their tributes to the legendary actor.
"The loss of a great artist, always cause for both mourning and celebration: Gene Hackman a great actor, inspiring and magnificent in his work and complexity. I mourn his loss, and celebrate his existence and contribution," wrote filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola who directed Hackman in 1974's mystery thriller The Conversation. Hackman reportedly turned down an offer to play the role that Robert Duvall ended up portraying in Coppola's epic film Apocalypse Now. Imagine Hackman saying, "I love the smell of napalm in the morning." It would have been an addition to some of the actor's iconic cinematic moments.
Speaking of iconic, Valerie Perrine, Hackman's co-star in Superman, said, "He was a genius and one of the greatest to grace the silver screen. I had the honor of working with Him on Superman. His performances are legendary. His talent will be missed." Perrine played Lex Luthor's (Hackman) lover in the superhero film, one of the late actor's most iconic roles.
Josh Brolin, on the other hand, described Hackman as one of his favourite actors. The Thanos star wrote, "Not many who beat to their own drums like he did."
Viola Davis, meanwhile, said that she loved Hackman "in everything" as she specifically mentioned the films The Conversation, The French Connection, The Poseidon Adventure, and Unforgiven. Pointing out Hackman's ability to play "tough yet vulnerable," characters, Davis said that he is "one of the greats."
One the other hand, filmmaker Paul Feig credited Hackman's performance The Conversation for changing his perception of acting. "His performance in The Conversation alone changed the way I looked at acting and what actors could bring to a role," Feig wrote on X.
Edgar Wright, another notable filmmaker, kept it simple: "The greatest."
