Gene Hackman’s 12 Greatest Performances: ‘The French Connection,’ ‘The Royal Tenenbaums,’ and More
One of the first major film stars to break out in the 1970s, Gene Hackman was the epitome of New Hollywood. An actor with livewire intensity, he had a grit and brusqueness that few others could ever match, and he was perfectly suited for the types of anti-heroic, morally gray characters that would define the Hollywood revolution of the decade. In his Oscar-winning role as a violent, thuggish cop on a mission in “The French Connection,” he showcases unnerving levels of adrenaline and thirst for justice: The way he grits his teeth during the movie’s iconic car chase scene elevates it from very good to extraordinary. In the hands of another actor, the role could be one-note, but Hackman made it iconic.
What Hackman a great actor wasn’t just his talent for playing morally compromised, loathsome men — although his most famous roles over the course of his career fall into that broad archetype. Hackman was a great actor because of his unparalleled range, his ability to both play things low and go all-out chewing the scenery, to play decent or wicked. Whenever he was onscreen, you were guaranteed a performance different from any he had given before.
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Born in San Bernardino, California in 1930, Hackman turned to acting in the ’50s, after dropping out of high school and serving in the Marines for four years. While working in bit roles on TV and on stage, he made his film debut in the 1964 drama “Lilith.” That project eventually lead him to work again with the film’s star, Warren Beatty, in the revolutionary 1967 crime drama “Bonnie & Clyde.” Attracting great notices for his performance, he received a Best Supporting Actor nomination, and received a second for the 1970 film “I Never Sang for My Father.” “The French Connection” was his first true leading role, and he almost didn’t get it: Director William Friedkin was reluctant to cast him, considering multiple other stars before giving him the role. But it made him a star, and he remained one for the rest of his career.
Over the next 20 years, Hackman had an adventurous streak as an actor, choosing a variety of challenging roles with some of the best directors of all-time. He excelled in the neo-noir genre, including the cult classic “Night Moves.” In Francis Ford Coppola’s “The Conversation,” he gave one of his most challenging and complex performances of all time. He picked up another Oscar for his brilliant villain turn in Clint Eastwood’s dark Western “Unforgiven.” And he managed to become a bonafide marquee film star via disaster films like “The Poseidon Adventure” and as a comic supervillain in the “Superman” film franchise. He would ultimately retire in the early 2000s, with over 100 film credits to his name and a strong legacy as one of the great actors of his generation.
In honor of Hackman’s life after the news of his tragic death — along with the death of his second wife, concert pianist Betsy Arakawa — IndieWire has combed through the star’s extensive filmography to find the films that best showcase his indomitable range. Read on for the 12 best Gene Hackman performances, listed in chronological order.
With editorial contributions from Christian Blauvelt, Kate Erbland, and Ryan Lattanzio.
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