A Hollywood Legend’s Final Act: A Lesson in Estate Planning
The world recently bid farewell to legendary actor Gene Hackman, who passed away on February 18, 2025, at the age of 95. Just six days earlier, his wife, Betsy Arakawa, died on February 12, 2025 at the age of 65.1 Hackman reportedly had Alzheimer’s disease and succumbed to complications from heart disease, while Arakawa tragically died from hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, a rare illness spread by rodent exposure.2 Both passed at their home in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Hackman was best known for his Oscar-winning roles as Detective “Popeye” Doyle in The French Connection (1971) and Sheriff Little Bill Daggett in Unforgiven (1992), as well as his iconic turn as Lex Luthor in Superman (1978) and its sequels.3 He met Arakawa in the mid-1980s at a gym in California, where she worked while pursuing a career as a classical pianist.4 The couple married in 1991 and maintained a quiet life together until their deaths in 2025.
While their nearly simultaneous deaths were heartbreaking, they also unveiled an unexpected masterclass in thoughtful estate planning. With portions of their estate documents—such as their wills—now accessible through public filings, we have a rare chance to explore how careful legal foresight can shape the outcome of even the most complex estates—especially when it comes to simultaneous death, survivorship clauses, and charitable planning. In this article, we’ll unpack the key lessons from the Hackman estate and what they mean for your own planning decisions.
The Hackman Estate Plan: What We Know
Gene Hackman executed his will on June 7, 2005, naming his wife, Betsy Arakawa, as both the sole beneficiary of his estate and the successor trustee of the Gene Hackman Living Trust.5 In the event that Arakawa was unable or unwilling to serve, the role of trustee would pass to his longtime attorney, Michael G. Sutin. After Sutin’s passing in 2019, Hackman designated attorney Julia L. Peters as the next in line to serve.6 Interestingly, Hackman’s will made no mention of his three children from his previous marriage to Fay Maltese: Christopher Hackman (65), Elizabeth Hackman (62), and Leslie Allen (59). This omission—whether intentional or not—places greater emphasis on the distribution terms outlined in his living trust, which remain private and undisclosed to the public.
Arakawa, however, added a notable provision to her estate plan: a 90-day survivorship clause.7 That clause dictated that if she and Hackman died within 90 days of each other, her estate would instead be directed to a charitable trust.
Hackman’s net worth was reportedly around $80 million, including intellectual property rights, investments, and real estate holdings.8
Survivorship Clauses & Simultaneous Death: Clearing Up the Confusion
What Is a Survivorship Clause?
A survivorship clause is a straightforward but powerful estate planning tool that requires a beneficiary to outlive the testator by a set period—often 90 days—in order to inherit. Though simple in design, this provision serves several important purposes. It helps prevent the need for multiple probate proceedings, reduces potential tax inefficiencies, and brings clarity to asset distribution when deaths occur close together in time. In the case of Hackman and Arakawa, this clause played a pivotal role. It determined whether Arakawa’s estate would flow back to Hackman or, as her will directed, be redirected to a charitable trust due to their deaths occurring just six days apart.
What Happens If It’s Not Clear Who Died First?
In the absence of a specifically stated survivorship period in a will or trust, many states default to the rules outlined in the Uniform Simultaneous Death Act (USDA).9 This model law is designed to resolve the legal gray area that arises when two individuals die at or near the same time, and it helps prevent property from ping-ponging between estates. In Texas, if an individual does not survive another by at least 120 hours, they are generally treated as having predeceased the other, preventing assets from automatically transferring between their estates.10 This rule applies unless a governing instrument, such as a will or trust, provides otherwise or specific exceptions under the statute apply.
Florida takes a similar approach with its Simultaneous Death Law, which presumes each person survived the other when the order of death is uncertain, preventing automatic transfer of assets between estates unless the governing instrument states otherwise.11 New Mexico also applies a comparable standard, presuming that an individual who fails to survive the decedent by at least 120 hours is deemed to have predeceased them for purposes of intestate succession and allowances—unless the estate planning documents state otherwise.12 Which is precisely what played out in Arakawa’s case. Her will included a custom 90-day survivorship clause, and because New Mexico law honors clearly stated provisions like this one, her estate will be handled according to these specific instructions. This really drives home the value of spelling things out clearly in your estate plan, so that there is no doubt about how your assets should be handled.
Estate Tax Implications: The IRS Is Always Watching
Federal Estate Tax Exposure
As of 2025, the federal estate tax exemption is $13.99 million per individual.13 That means Hackman’s $80 million estate far exceeds the threshold, putting it squarely in the taxable territory.
However, when assets pass to a surviving spouse, they qualify for the marital deduction under IRC §2056, deferring estate taxes until the second spouse’s death.14 In Hackman’s case, that would have delayed any major tax bill—but only if Arakawa survived.
Because Arakawa passed just six days earlier, her survivorship clause and the timing of their deaths may mean that no marital deduction applies, increasing the tax exposure—unless charitable strategies kick in.
Planning Takeaways from Hackman’s Estate: How Survivorship Clauses Provide Clarity and Charitable Trusts Add Strategic Value
Whether you’re a celebrity or an everyday citizen, survivorship clauses help eliminate ambiguity during emotionally difficult times. In Arakawa’s case, the 90-day requirement avoided legal battles and clarified that her estate would support charitable causes instead of looping back to Hackman’s estate. Without this clause, probate courts might have struggled to determine intent—or worse, family members could have contested distributions.
Arakawa’s backup plan—a charitable trust—wasn’t just generous, it was smart. Under IRC §2055, assets left to qualified charities are 100% estate tax deductible, reducing the taxable estate for heirs or other beneficiaries.15 Charitable trusts come with a range of benefits that go beyond tax savings. They can help protect assets from creditors, create a lasting philanthropic legacy, and even offer positive public relations benefits—especially for high-profile individuals and families. For couples without children or those with estranged heirs, this kind of planning can serve not only as a smart tax strategy but also as a meaningful reflection of their personal values and priorities.
Wrap-Up: A Hollywood Ending With Real-Life Lessons
Gene Hackman’s estate serves as a powerful example of thoughtful, proactive planning—particularly for high-net-worth individuals, blended families, or anyone focused on protecting their legacy. The details in his and Arakawa’s estate documents highlight several key strategies: the importance of keeping your estate plan current, including survivorship clauses to prevent unintended outcomes, and using charitable trusts to strike a balance between generosity and tax efficiency. They also show the value of planning for unlikely but impactful scenarios, like simultaneous or closely timed deaths. Whether you’re in Texas, Florida, or elsewhere, these approaches are relevant to anyone with assets, complex family dynamics, or philanthropic intentions.
1 Suzy Byrne, Gene Hackman, Betsy Arakawa death investigation: Health department reportedly found signs of rodent infestation on property, Yahoo! Ent., (Apr. 15, 2025), https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/celebrity/article/gene-hackman-betsy-arakawa-death-investigation-health-department-reportedly-found-signs-of-rodent-infestation-on-property-190506396.html (last visited Apr. 16, 2025).
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3Alexis Simmerman and Bryan Alexander, Actor Gene Hackman, wife Betsy Arakawa found dead in New Mexico home. What we know, Austin Am.-Statesman, (Feb. 27, 2025), https://www.statesman.com/story/news/state/2025/02/27/gene-hackman-wife-betsy-arakawa-died-dies-actor-what-happened-how-old-new-mexico-dog/80676998007/ (last visited Apr. 16, 2025).
4Hayley Santaflorentina, Who Was Gene Hackman’s Wife, Betsy Arakawa?, NBC DFW, (Feb. 27, 2025), https://www.nbcdfw.com/entertainment/entertainment-news/who-was-gene-hackmans-wife-betsy-arakawa/3779788/ (last visited Apr. 16, 2025)
5KiMi Robinson, Gene Hackman and wife Betsy Arakawa named each other in their wills, USA Today, (Mar. 15, 2025), https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/celebrities/2025/03/15/gene-hackman-will-betsy-arakawa-estate/82422061007/ (last visited Apr. 16, 2025).
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8See Gene Hackman Net Worth: How Much Money Did the Legendary Two-Time Oscar-Winning Actor Have?, The Econ. Times republished by MSN, https://www.msn.com/en-in/money/topstories/gene-hackman-net-worth-how-much-money-did-the-legendary-two-time-oscar-winning-actor-have/ar-AA1zZ2ag (last visited Apr. 16, 2025).
9Unif. Probate Code § 2-104 (Unif. Law Comm’n 2019) (codifying provisions of the Uniform Simultaneous Death Act), available at https://www.uniformlaws.org (last visited Apr. 16, 2025).
10Tex. Est. Code §§ 121.101–.102, available at https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/ES/htm/ES.121.htm (last visited Apr. 16, 2025).
11Fla. Stat. § 732.601, available at http://www.leg.state.fl.us/Statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&Search_String=&URL=0700-0799/0732/Sections/0732.601.html (last visited Apr. 16, 2025).
12N.M. Stat. § 45-2-104, available at https://law.justia.com/codes/new-mexico/chapter-45/article-2/part-1/subpart-1/section-45-2-104/ (last visited Apr. 16, 2025).
13I.R.S., Estate tax (last updated Oct. 29, 2024), https://www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employed/estate-tax (last visited Apr. 17, 2025).
14See IRC § 2056(a) (providing an unlimited marital deduction for property passing to a surviving spouse, thereby deferring estate tax until the surviving spouse’s death).
15I.R.S., Estate and Gift Tax Chapter: Charitable Bequests, in Estate Tax Statistics, ch. 4, at 4 (1995), https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-soi/11pwcompench4d95.pdf (last visited Apr. 17, 2025).
