The saga surrounding Gene Hackman and Betsy Arakawa is continuing. Just a week after their cause of death was revealed, it’s been reported just what Hackman left behind in terms of his estate.
The two-time Oscar winner and his wife were found dead in their Santa Fe home in February. Now Hackman’s will has been revealed, and according to TMZ, he left everything to his late wife.
Videos by PopCulture.com
Per documents obtained by the outlet, Hackman made Arakawa his sole beneficiary in 1995, four years into their marriage. His three children, son Christopher and daughters Leslie and Elizabeth, whom he shares with ex-wife Faye Maltese, who died in 2017, were not named in the will at all. If there is no prenup, Arakawa’s estate, which could have a lot of money. Since New Mexico is a community property state, meaning assets and debts acquired during a marriage are jointly owned and owed by both spouses, her share would go to charity.
Since Hackman’s children are his most direct living heirs, it can be assumed that they would get his share even though they weren’t named in the will. His oldest child, Chris, has reportedly hired prominent California trust and estate attorney Andrew M. Katzenstein to challenge the will. It should be noted that Hackman didn’t have the best relationship with his children over the years, which could be why they weren’t in his will. However, he did get closer to them later in life.
After being found dead in their home on Feb. 26, Hackman and Arakawa’s cause of death was finally revealed last week. Hackman died of a heart disease and showed signs of advanced Alzheimer’s disease, while Arakawa died of hantavirus pulmonary syndrome and likely died before her husband. An investigation was immediately launched into their mysterious deaths, with carbon monoxide poisoning being ruled out. While their cause of death has been announced, it seems like the problems are only growing with their estates.
How this will go for the Hackman children is unknown, but it sounds like it could play in their favor, and they aren’t backing down. It’s a sad situation to deal with, but one that has to happen, unfortunately. At the very least, his children were able to at least get some answers with what happened to their father.