Kevin Costner leads tributes to Gene Hackman

Kevin Costner, Clint Eastwood and Tom Hanks are among the stars to pay tribute to the late Gene Hackman.

Kevin Costner has paid tribute to the “generosity and vulnerability” of the late Gene Hackman.

The 70-year-old actor feels “lucky” to have worked with the screen legend – who, along with wife Betsy Arakawa and one of their pet dogs, was found dead at his home on Wednesday (26.02.25), aged 95 – on both ‘No Way Out’ and ‘Wyatt Earp’ and remembered his late co-star as the “best” he had ever worked with.

Kevin shared a clip from an old interview in which he recalled clashing with a director about a scene, only for Gene to approach him later to offer him reassurance.

He said in the video: “Gene was the best actor I’ve ever worked with…

“He looked at me and said, ‘Hey, I went through a divorce, I’ve been doing a lot of questionable movies lately and when I saw you fighting for what you wanted today, it reminded me of how I used to feel about acting. It was good what you did.’ And he just got in his car and drove off.”

And in the caption of his Instagram post, the ‘Bodyguard’ star wrote: “Gene Hackman was my favorite actor, and I was lucky enough to work with him more than once. Sharing a story that I told years ago with @richeisen—a moment with Gene that showed me that his generosity and vulnerability ran even deeper than his well of talent. This moment was probably small for him, but really huge for me.”

Meanwhile, Clint Eastwood said he was “extremely saddened” by the loss of his ‘Unforgiven’ and ‘Absolute Power’ co-star.

The 94-year-old actor-and-director wrote on X: “Extremely saddened by the passing of Gene Hackman, He will be deeply missed… (sic)”

Francis Ford Coppola pledged to “celebrate” the actor’s work, as well as “mourning” his loss.

He wrote on Instagram: “The loss of a great artist, always cause for both mourning and celebration: Gene Hackman a great actor, inspiring and magnificent in his work and complexity. I mourn his loss, and celebrate his existence and contribution.”

Ralph Fiennes shared a simple black and white portrait of Gene along with the words: “Gene Hackman 1930 – 2025”.

Viola Davis hailed the Oscar-winning star as “one of the greats”.

She wrote on Instagram: “Loved you in everything! The Conversation, The French Connection, The Poseidon Adventure, Unforgiven—tough yet vulnerable. You were one of the greats. God bless those who loved you. Rest well, sir.”

And Tom Hanks also paid tribute on the platform.

He wrote: “There has never been a “Gene Hackman Type.” There has only been Gene Hackman.(sic)”