Gene Hackman is one of the most versatile and accomplished character actors on film and is appreciated by critics and audiences for his clean, no-nonsense style of acting. In his film work, Hackman was famed for the every-man quality to his work with which audiences of all types could identify which he demonstrated in the more than 80 films in which he appeared.
Throughout his film career which lasted more than half a century, Hackman’s subtle work has been showered with honors. He has won two Academy Awards (for 1971’s “The French Connection” with William Friedkin and 1992’s “Unforgiven” with Clint Eastwood) from five nominations. He has been given an honorary Cecil B. DeMille Award at the Golden Globes, while winning three competitive Globes from eight total nominations and is a Screen Actors Guild Award winner from his two nominations.
After appearing in 2004’s “Welcome to Mooseport,” Hackman announced that he was retiring from acting and now only occasionally does voice-over work. But he has left behind an enormously impressive body of work to enjoy, so let’s honor the great man by counting down and ranking his 24 best performances. Our photo gallery includes his Oscar-winning roles, plus “Bonnie and Clyde,” “The Royal Tenenbaums,” “The Conversation,” “Mississippi Burning” and more.
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24. THE QUICK AND THE DEAD (1995)
Image Credit: Murray Close/Tri Star/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock Director: Sam Raimi. Writer: Simon Moore. Starring Sharon Stone, Gene Hackman, Russell Crowe, Leonardo DiCaprio.
In Sam Raimi’s wild Western, Hackman plays one of his great bad guys, John Herod, a Trump-like boss of a frontier town who, in order to stroke his own ego, invites gunfighters in the region to duel each other one-on-one so that the survivor can face him in a showdown, which Herod would undoubtedly win. His plan is upended, however, when a Clint Eastwood-type hero (Sharon Stone in a great gender-reversal role) enters the contest and plays havoc with Herod’s plans. Religious references abound — Stone’s right-hand man is a minister (Russell Crowe) who must return to his gunfighter past in order to survive, and Hackman’s character ain’t named Herod for nothin’. Hackman’s bad guys are not often gleeful, but he’s an absolute hoot here.
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23. ENEMY OF THE STATE (1998)
Image Credit: Linda R. Chen/Touchstone/REX/Shutterstock Director: Tony Scott. Writer: David Marconi. Starring Will Smith, Gene Hackman, Jon Voight, Regina King.
Hackman is especially effective when his characters are shrouded in mystery, as his is here in Tony Scott’s espionage thriller. As a spy contact working under an assumed name, Hackman is paired with Will Smith as a labor lawyer who is being framed in the murder of a U.S. Congressman. The pair takes an unconventional route in trying to clear Smith’s name and unmask the real killer. Hackman takes a rather playful approach to his mysterious spook, and, even though they have different acting styles, Smith and Hackman have surprising chemistry together. In most regards, “Enemy of the People” is a standard thriller, but, when he’s onscreen, Hackman’s work lifts it to a level that makes it more than your usual spy movie.
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22. PRIME CUT (1972)
Image Credit: Cinema Center 100 Prods/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock Director: Michael Ritchie. Writer: Robert Dillon. Starring Lee Marvin, Gene Hackman, Sissy Spacek, Gregory Walcott.
This is one dark action movie with a wild premise. Lee Marvin plays Devlin, an enforcer for Chicago’s Irish mob, who travels to Kansas City to collect a debt from Mary Ann (Hackman), the crooked owner of a slaughterhouse, whose meat is being processed includes several dead mobsters. Much of “Prime Cut” is pretty rough stuff with explicit violence, chopped-up human meat, female slaves (including Sissy Spacek in her film debut) being kept in pens, plus the hint of a gay relationship between Mary Ann and his brother Weenie (Gregory Walcott). This is bold material with which to play, and Hackman bravely plays to the second balcony as Mary Ann, a move that makes “Prime Cut” a lot more fun.
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21. THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE (1972)
Image Credit: 20th Century Fox/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock Director: Ronald Neame. Writers: Stirling Silliphant, Wendell Mayes. Starring Gene Hackman, Ernest Borgnine, Red Buttons, Shelley Winters.
Every star in the 1970s seemed to wind up in some disaster movie, and Hackman was no exception. Fortunately, the one he chose was one of the genre’s most memorable. In “The Poseidon Adventure,” Hackman plays Rev. Frank Scott, a minister whose unconventional views have led to his banishment to an African parish. His voyage is literally upended when the ship on which he is traveling is hit by a giant wave that turns the S.S. Poseidon upside down. Rev. Scott becomes the ship’s unlikely hero when he leads his (all-star) group of terrified passengers upward to safety. Even in an at-times corny disaster movie, Hackman is one of those actors who makes you believe in his character’s heroism.
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20. TWICE IN A LIFETIME (1985)
Image Credit: Courtesy of Tandem Productions Director: Bud Yorkin. Writer: Colin Welland. Starring Gene Hackman, Ann-Margret, Ellen Burstyn, Amy Madigan, Ally Sheedy.
Hackman stars in Bud Yorkin’s midlife-crisis comedy as Harry, a 50 year-old factory worker, whose longtime marriage to Kate (Ellen Burstyn) has fallen into a rut. At his neighborhood tavern, however, Harry meets Audrey (Ann-Margret), a new barmaid to whom Harry finds himself very attracted. (Well, of course he does, she’s Ann-Margret!) When Harry’s infatuation leads Harry to ask Kate for a divorce, however, that decision severely impacts his family, especially his daughters Helen (Ally Sheedy) who is about to get married, and Sunny (Amy Madigan) who is having some marital problems of her own. For his performance as Harry, Hackman earned his fifth Golden Globe nomination.
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19. THE FIRM (1993)
Image Credit: Moviestore Collection/REX/Shutterstock Director: Sydney Pollack. Writers: David Rabe, Robert Towne, David Rayfiel. Starring Tom Cruise, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Gene Hackman, Ed Harris.
Hackman is in full mentor mode in Sydney Pollack’s film of the John Grisham legal thriller. As Avery Tolar, a senior partner at a small Memphis legal firm, Hackman takes in recent law school graduate Mitch McDeere (Tom Cruise), who begins to suspect that this new law firm is behind some dirty dealings. To Mitch, Avery’s mentoring is beginning to approach grooming him to participate in the firm’s criminal enterprise. Hackman is very good here, being totally convincing as someone who is trying to help Mitch, then taking a sinister turn as someone who is seeking to entrap him.
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18. FRENCH CONNECTION II (1975)
Image Credit: 20th Century Fox/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock Director: John Frankenheimer. Writers: Alexander Jacobs, Robert Dillon, Laurie Dillon. Starring Gene Hackman, Fernando Rey, Bernard Fresson.
While it suffers a bit in comparison with William Friedkin’s Oscar-winning original, John Frankenheimer’s “French Connection II” has its own fans as well. Hackman earned his third Golden Globe nomination for the sequel in which only Hackman’s Popeye Doyle and Fernando Rey’s slippery Alain Charnier return to continue their cat-and-mouse game. Charnier who waved “bye-bye” to Doyle at the end of “FC1,” travels to Marseilles where Doyle is hot on his heels, determined to bring him to justice. When you have actors of the caliber of Hackman and Rey, watching them play their “now-I-got-ya, now-I-don’t” games is sheer joy.
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17. CRIMSON TIDE (1995)
Image Credit: Hollywood Pictures/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock Director: Tony Scott. Writer: Michael Schiffer. Starring Denzel Washington, Gene Hackman, James Gandolfini, Viggo Mortensen.
In the guise of a nuclear age thriller, “Crimson Tide” is at its essence a personal drama dealing with two men engaging in a test of wills. The struggle is between Capt. Frank Ramsey, commander of the nuclear submarine USS Alabama, and Lt. Commander Ron Hunter (Denzel Washington), an analytical officer whose approach marks a stark contrast with Ramsey’s more intuitive style of leadership. Their differing viewpoints could jeopardize the sub as the Russians threaten a nuclear attack. As exciting as the film’s action aims to be, the real electricity is between Hackman and Washington.
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16. NO WAY OUT (1987)
Image Credit: Moviestore Collection/REX/Shutterstock Director: Roger Donaldson. Writer: Robert Garland. Starring Kevin Costner, Gene Hackman, Sean Young, Will Patton.
In Roger Donaldson’s political thriller, Hackman plays David Brice, the U.S. Secretary of State who is impressed by the heroism of Lt. Commander Tom Farrell’s (Kevin Costner) rescue of a fellow sailor, so Brice offers him a job at the Pentagon. Unbeknownst to Brice, Farrell has been carrying on a secret love affair with Brice’s mistress Susan Atwell (Sean Young), but there may be a reason why the affair is about more than just torrid passion. Hackman knows how to play the bureaucrat well, and his scenes with Costner in particular have a tension to them that builds up the suspense in the film.
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15. SCARECROW (1973)
Image Credit: Warner Bros/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock Director: Jerry Schatzberg. Writer: Garry Michael White. Starring Gene Hackman, Al Pacino, Eileen Brennan, Richard Lynch.
Hackman, who was just coming off his Oscar-winning role in “The French Connection,” and Al Pacino, fresh from his “Godfather” triumph, teamed up in this Jerry Schatzberg road movie about two vagabonds who meet in California and hit the road together to make it to Pittsburgh, where they plan to open a car wash together. Their journey proves to be traumatic for Pacino’s Lionel, and Hackman’s Max must nurse him back to stable mental health. It’s fascinating to watch Hackman and Pacino act together, as their styles are very different, but that difference helps to create a certain kind of tension that winds up helping the film.
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14. UNDER FIRE (1983)
Image Credit: Orion/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock Director: Roger Spottiswoode. Writers: Clayton Frohman, Ron Shelton. Starring Nick Nolte, Gene Hackman, Joanna Cassidy, Jean-Louis Trintignant.
Set in Nicaragua during the 1979 guerrilla uprising against the oppressive Somoza regime, Roger Spottiswoode’s underrated “Under Fire” stars Nick Nolte as war photographer Russell Price working alongside news reporter Alex Grazier (Hackman), who feels that he is next in line to become his network’s anchorman. Both men have a complicated relationship with radio reporter Claire (Joanna Cassidy), a romantic triangle set amidst the turmoil of the Nicaraguan revolution. For his performance as Alex, Hackman earned his fourth Golden Globe nomination.
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13. SUPERMAN (1978)
Image Credit: Warner Bros/Dc Comics/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock Director: Richard Donner. Writers: Mario Puzo, David Newman, Leslie Newman, Robert Benton. Starring Christopher Reeve, Marlon Brando, Gene Hackman, Margot Kidder.
The legendary Lex Luthor is another in Hackman’s list of tongue-in-cheek villains and one of his best. The nemesis of Superman, Lex lives in one of the strangest bad guy lairs ever — a flooded subterranean train station. To each his own, I guess. With lots of time on his hands, Lex gets to scheming (as he always does). This time he plans to destroy the West Coast. And of course Hackensack, NJ. I trust the shoot was as much fun as it looked, because Hackman appears to be having a ball. Hackman’s Lex returned for “Superman II” (1980) and “Superman IV: The Quest for Peace” (1987).
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12. GET SHORTY (1995)
Image Credit: Mgm/Jersey/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock Director: Barry Sonnenfeld. Writer: Scott Frank, based on the Elmore Leonard novel. Starring John Travolta, Gene Hackman, Rene Russo, Danny DeVito, Bette Midler.
Hackman got a plum of a role in the film adaptation of Elmore Leonard’s novel “Get Shorty” as Hollywood producer Harry Zimm, who is being strong-armed by mob enforcer Chili Palmer (John Travolta) into paying an overdue debt. Once the strong-arming is done, however, Chili gets down to the real business — pitching a script idea to the Hollywood bigwig. It’s a wonderfully cynical idea, and Hackman & Travolta play it for all it’s worth. As a member of the film’s ensemble, Hackman earned his first Screen Actors Guild Award nomination.
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11. THE BIRDCAGE (1996)
Image Credit: Lorey Sebastian/United Artists/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock Director: Mike Nichols. Writer: Elaine May, based on the film “La Cage aux Folles” written by Jean Poiret, Francis Veber. Starring Robin Williams, Nathan Lane, Gene Hackman, Dianne Wiest.
When it was announced that there would be an American remake of the hit French film “La Cage aux Folles,” many film fans’ hearts sunk. The original was great as it was, and many felt that if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. But the resulting product, Mike Nichols’ “The Birdcage,” adapted by his comedy partner Elaine May, was a pleasant surprise, with Robin Williams & Nathan Lane cast as the squabbling but loving gay couple, and Hackman in the role of the father of the woman to whom who Williams’ son is engaged. It’s a thankless part, but the wondrous takes to this unusual situation that Hackman provides is comedy gold. As a member of the film’s ensemble, Hackman won his first Screen Actors Guild Award.
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10. THE ROYAL TENENBAUMS (2001)
Image Credit: James Hamilton/Touchstone/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock Director: Wes Anderson. Writers: Wes Anderson, Owen Wilson. Starring Gene Hackman, Anjelica Huston, Gwyneth Paltrow, Owen Wilson, Ben Stiller.
In one of Wes Anderson’s best films, Hackman stars as Royal Tenenbaum, the shady patriarch of a most eccentric New York family whose high-achieving children — business whiz Chas, esteemed writer Margot and tennis pro Richie — have all peaked way too early as children, and now as adults, each seems to have no purpose in life. Royal’s ex-wife Etheline is considering remarrying when Royal returns to the family mansion after being kicked out of his hotel room. It is only then that Royal’s reputation for scheming gets taken to a higher level. For his performance as Royal Tenenbaum, Hackman won his third Golden Globe Award.
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9. YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN (1974)
Image Credit: 20th Century Fox/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock Director: Mel Brooks. Writers: Mel Brooks, Gene Wilder. Starring Gene Wilder, Peter Boyle, Teri Garr, Madeline Kahn, Marty Feldman, Cloris Leachman, Gene Hackman.
It’s only a single scene, but Hackman’s performance as The Blind Hermit in Mel Brooks’ classic comedy “Young Frankenstein” to this day is one of the most memorable in the actor’s career. It’s funny because the blind man has no idea of the fearsome look of the monster who has come to his door and treats him like any dinner guest. But it’s touching because Hackman imbues with blind man with a loneliness that is broken when someone…anyone…shows up to be his friend. The joy on his face when offering his new friend a meal and after-dinner cigars is heartwarming, only to be broken once again when his new friend leaves to stalk elsewhere. “Where are you going? I was going to make espresso.”
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8. HOOSIERS (1986)
Image Credit: Moviestore Collection/REX/Shutterstock Director: David Anspaugh. Writer: Angelo Pizzo. Starring Gene Hackman, Barbara Hershey, Dennis Hopper, Ethan Hawke, Sally Hawkins.
Hackman has made a few sports-themed films in his career, though none are as beloved as “Hoosiers,” the 1986 film about Indiana high school basketball. Hackman portrays Norman Dale, hired by Hickory High School to replace their late beloved coach. Almost from the start, Dale’s methods alienate the basketball-crazy citizens of Hickory to the point where he is nearly voted out by the citizenry but is reprieved when the town’s best player says that he will return to the team. At that point, Dale buckles down and sets out to bring the town a championship. Hackman’s coach is very much a familiar trope, but he adds small touches that help to individualize Dale and make us care even more about him.
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7. NIGHT MOVES (1975)
Image Credit: Warner Bros/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock Director: Arthur Penn. Writer: Alan Sharp. Starring Gene Hackman, Susan Clark, Jennifer Warren, Melanie Griffith, James Woods.
In an era when the film noir was making a small comeback, Arthur Penn, Hackman’s director on “Bonnie and Clyde,” came up with this unsung gem that is right in that genre’s tradition. Private eye Harry Moseby (Hackman), who is being cheated on by his wife Ellen (Susan Clark), is hired by an aging actress (Janet Ward) to find her 16 year-old daughter Delly (Melanie Griffith), but Delly is not a teen who wants to be found. Hackman gives his private eye a laid-back ’70s feel mixed with a certain crankiness. It’s a great choice. For his performance as Harry, Hackman earned his third nomination for a BAFTA Award.
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6. I NEVER SANG FOR MY FATHER (1970)
Image Credit: Courtesy of Columbia Pictures Director: Gilbert Cates. Writer: Robert Anderson, based on his play. Starring Melvyn Douglas, Gene Hackman, Dorothy Stickney, Estelle Parsons.
Hackman’s second Academy Award nomination came for his performance in this Gilbert Cates’ film adaptation of the Robert Anderson play. In this family drama, Hackman plays Gene Garrison, a widowed college professor who still feels smothered by his parents, particularly by his father Tom (Melvyn Douglas). Still, Gene is racked with guilt in dealing with his father, particularly since he plans to remarry and move with his new wife far away in California. Hackman, a trained theater actor, has tackled relatively few play adaptations in his film career, so “I Never Sang” is probably the best film example of the power that Hackman must have displayed onstage.
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5. MISSISSIPPI BURNING (1988)
Image Credit: Moviestore Collection/REX/Shutterstock Director: Alan Parker. Writer: Chris Gerolmo. Starring Gene Hackman, Willem Dafoe, Frances McDormand, Brad Dourif.
Hackman’s film career has been made up of movies that have largely steered clear of controversy. Except for this one. In a story loosely based on the murder of three civil rights workers in Mississippi in 1964, the film focuses on the FBI investigation of the killings. Hackman plays Agent Rupert Anderson who, along with his partner Alan Ward (Willem Dafoe) travels to Mississippi to investigate the murders. Though some, including the families of the murdered workers, objected to the film’s fictionalization, the acting from Hackman, Dafoe and Frances McDormand was widely praised. For his performance as Agent Anderson, Hackman earned his fourth Academy Award nomination and his sixth Golden Globes nod.
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4. THE CONVERSATION (1974)
Image Credit: Moviestore/REX/Shutterstock Writer/Director: Francis Ford Coppola. Starring Gene Hackman, John Cazale, Allen Garfield, Cindy Williams, Frederic Forrest.
In one of the rarities of Oscar history, Francis Ford Coppola directed two of 1974’s five nominees for Best Picture — “The Conversation” and “The Godfather Part II” (which won the big prize). But don’t think of “The Conversation,” or its lead performance by Hackman as an also-ran. In Coppola’s film, Hackman delivers one of his best career performances as Harry Caul, a privacy-obsessed surveillance expert who, on a routine job, tapes a conversation that may have led to a potential murder. For his performance as Harry, Hackman earned his second Golden Globe nomination.
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3. BONNIE AND CLYDE (1967)
Image Credit: Moviestore Collection/REX/Shutterstock Director: Arthur Penn. Writers: David Newman, Robert Benton. Starring Warren Beatty, Faye Dunaway, Gene Hackman, Estelle Parsons, Michael J. Pollard.
Although he had some small parts in earlier films, Hackman’s big break on film was in this Warren Beatty/Faye Dunaway classic. As Buck Barrow, who becomes part of his younger brother Clyde’s (Beatty) gang, Hackman lets us into Buck’s mind as he seems slightly irritated at having to take orders from his younger sibling and his new girlfriend Bonnie (Dunaway). All this, plus Buck has to deal with the routine hysterics of his wife Blanche (Oscar winner Estelle Parsons). It’s spectacular star-making work, and for his performance as Buck, Hackman earned his first Academy Award nomination.
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2. UNFORGIVEN (1992)
Image Credit: Warner Bros/REX/Shutterstock Director: Clint Eastwood. Writer: David Webb Peeples. Starring Clint Eastwood, Gene Hackman, Morgan Freeman, Richard Harris.
On paper, the role of a corrupt sheriff in an Old West Wyoming town might not scream out “Oscar!” But in Hackman’s hands, the role of Sheriff “Little Bill” Daggett makes for a mesmerizing performance from start to finish. Though ostensibly an officer of the law, Little Bill is anything but as he holds the town of Big Whiskey in the palm of his hand to amass as much power as he can. Yet, even though Little Bill is the bad guy in his face-off with the mysterious Will Munny (Clint Eastwood), Hackman brings such understanding to the role that you can’t help but feel a little sorry for Little Bill. For his performance as Little Bill, Hackman won his second Academy Award and his second Golden Globe Award.
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1. THE FRENCH CONNECTION (1971)
Image Credit: 20th Century Fox/D'Antoni Prodcutions/Schine-Moore Prods/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock Director: William Friedkin. Writer: Ernest Tidyman. Starring Gene Hackman, Roy Scheider, Fernando Rey, Tony LoBianco.
Arguably the role for which Hackman may most likely be remembered is as NYPD Detective Jimmy “Popeye” Doyle, a hard-nosed cop who, with his partner Buddy “Cloudy” Russo (Roy Scheider), tries to find and stop French criminal mastermind Alain Charnier (Fernando Rey) from delivering a huge delivery of heroin to the United States. Of course, today, the plot almost seems incidental. What we remember is William Friedkin’s slam-bang direction, including that nerve-rattling car chase beneath the elevated trains on a New York City street. And most of all, we remember Gene Hackman’s tough cop, whose tactics might seem a bit rough but whom we cheer on to catch the bad guy nonetheless. For his performance as Popeye Doyle, Hackman won his first Academy Award and his first Golden Globe Award.
