Gene Hackman, the acclaimed actor who won an Oscar, was married to classical pianist Betsy Arakawa for more than three decades before they tragically passed away on February 26.
Prior to his marriage with Betsy, Hackman was previously married to Faye Maltese for a period spanning from 1956 to 1986. Together, they had three children named Christopher, Elizabeth, and Leslie. Faye Maltese passed away in 2017.
After the end of his marriage to Maltese, Gene Hackman tied the knot with Betsy Arakawa in 1991. They remained committed to each other until they both passed away in February 2025. Gene Hackman lived to the age of 95, while Betsy Arakawa was 63 at the time of her death.
Scroll down for a look back at Hackman and Arakawa’s biggest relationship moments:
1980s
Hackman and Arakawa began dating in the mid-1980s after he separated from his first wife, Faye Maltese.
In an interview with the Florida South Sun-Sentinal in 1985, Hackman stressed that unlike his character, Harry Mackenzie, in his movie at the time, Twice in a Lifetime, he “did not leave my real-life wife for a younger woman.”
“We just drifted apart. We lost sight of each other. When you work in this business, marriage takes a great deal of work and love,” Hackman said of his separation from Maltese.
1989
A profile piece in The New York Times noted that “for the last five years” Hackman had “been living quietly with a 28-year-old woman named Betsy Arakawa, a classical pianist he met while she was working part-time in a California fitness center.”
1990
By 1990, Hackman and Arakawa had moved into a newly built house in Santa Fe, New Mexico, where they resided until their deaths. The couple opened up about their home to Architectural Digest at the time.
The outlet described the home as “12 acres of piñon-covered hilltop a few miles north of Santa Fe, with a 360-degree view that stretches as far as the mountains of Colorado.”
Discussing the furnishings, Hackman said, “We bought a few things in Santa Fe. Other things came from auctions in New York, an antiques shop in Germany that Betsy and I found, and from Los Angeles. It’s a nice combination of soft southwestern pieces and hard-edged antiques.”
1991
Hackman and Arakawa got married in 1991.
1999
Hackman and Arakawa adopted a German Shepherd named Gene after two stray dogs walked onto the set of Hackman’s film, The Replacements, in Baltimore, per The Baltimore Sun. The other stray was named Keanu after his costar in the film, Keanu Reeves.
The couple already had two German Shepherds at home in New Mexico.
“[Hackman] and his wife were very good to us. They went through the steps for adoption just like everyone else,” Phil Staelens of no-kill shelter Animal Rescue Inc. told the outlet at the time. “[Gene Hackman] kept thanking us and apologizing for taking up our time. [Betsy Hackman] came back to visit and to bathe the dog, then took him back to New Mexico.”
2014
By now retired from acting, Hackman turned to writing novels. Speaking on the “Writer’s Bone” podcast about his latest book, Pursuit, the actor said Arakawa had helped him hone his writing style.
“If, in fact, I have a style, it came from repeated edits, friends’ suggestions, and my wife’s unwavering, specific read-throughs,” he said.
2020
In a rare interview with Empire magazine, Hackman shared some insight into his post-retirement life with Arakawa. He said that the couple enjoyed watching “DVDs that my wife rents,” adding, ”We like simple stories that some of the little low-budget films manage to produce.”
According to the outlet, Hackman and Arakawa reserved every Friday night to watch the Comedy Channel together. He particularly liked Eddie Izzard. “The speed of thought is amazing,” he said.
2024
More than 30 years after getting married, Hackman and Arakawa were spotted in public for the first time in years. In pictures obtained by Page Six in March 2024, the couple were seen departing the Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen in Albuquerque, New Mexico. In the photos, Hackman, then 93, was spotted walking with the aid of a cane and held onto his wife’s arm.
