John Mulaney Talks About the Investigation into Gene Hackman’s Death

John Mulaney riffed on Gene Hackman’s death investigation in his latest talk-show monologue.

On April 23, during the latest episode of Everybody’s Live With John Mulaney, the comedian brought up a recent investigative report on the deaths of Gene Hackman and his wife, Betsy Arakawa, earlier this year.

Mulaney, 42, humorously commented on the uncertainty surrounding their deaths, contrasting it with the confidence in the theory that dinosaurs were wiped out by an asteroid millions of years ago. He quipped about the Santa Fe police and their imaginative theories about the couple’s demise, emphasizing the unknown nature of events.

The tragic incident occurred on February 26 when Hackman, 95, and Arakawa, 65, were found deceased. Hackman’s medical report indicated hypertensive atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease as the primary cause of death, with Alzheimer’s disease playing a significant role. Authorities determined Hackman passed away on February 18, while Arakawa was estimated to have died on February 12.

Her official cause of death is Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome (HPS), which is a rare, airborne infectious disease from rodent urine, droppings or saliva.

Earlier this month, the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office released images of the couple’s New Mexico home. They revealed that the main house was messy while the outbuildings were rodent-infested. There were overflowing trash cans on the $4 million property as well as piles of clothing and other clutter when the couple died. 

The New Mexico Department of Health reported dead rodents and rodent nests within three garages, two casitas and three sheds on Hackman and Arakawa’s estate.

Along with the property photos, the Sheriff’s report revealed Arakawa’s computer history, showing that she’d researched her symptoms between February 8 and February 12.

Judge Matthew Wilson decided that while photos of Hackman and Arakawa’s bodies must be censored, photos of the scene and their dead dog Zinnia were not to be concealed.

Yoshie Feaster, Arakawa’s mother, had wanted to keep graphic photos private.

“I humbly come before this court to request that this court respect my right to grieve in peace and find that I have a constitutional right to avoid seeing images of my daughter’s home, her dead body, her husband’s dead body, and their dog’s corpse,” Feaster, 91, said in court documents obtained by People on March 31. “The public spectacle surrounding my daughter’s death is one that no parent should have to live through.”

Hackman and Arakawa were reportedly laid to rest at a private memorial in Santa Fe earlier this year.