Who Are Gene Hackman's Children? Everything to Know About Christopher, Elizabeth and Leslie

In 1960, Gene Hackman and his first wife, Faye Maltese, welcomed their first child, Christopher Allen Hackman.

The French Connection actor sat down for a 1984 interview with journalist Leta Powell, where he was asked if the way he greeted his son, who was in his 20s, had changed.

"No, we still hug to this day, and I thank God that we are able to do that," said Gene. "I don't think we'll ever have a point where we have to shake hands."

In 2011, Gene told GQ he "lost touch with my son in terms of advice early on" while speaking about parenthood.

The Oscar-winning actor continued, "Maybe it had to do with being gone so much, doing location films when he was at an age where he needed support and guidance. It was very tough for me to be gone for three months and then come home and start bossing him around."

Years before his death, Gene said Christopher considered acting in Hollywood.

"My son thought he wanted to be an actor at one time and was in New York and I wrote him a couple of little monologues. I guess that's where I started. I really enjoyed it. Ideas would just pop into my head and I would write them down," he told Empire in 2020.

Gene and Faye had their second child and first daughter, Elizabeth Jean Hackman, in 1962.

The Bonnie and Clyde actor took her to several events when she was a child, including at a 1978 screening of Superman and the 1996 premiere of The Chamber.

Leslie Anne Hackman, Gene's youngest child with Faye, was born in 1966.

The Welcome to Mooseport actor said his youngest daughter, who has remained out of the spotlight, was "affected" by his film Misunderstood.

"But I think that she was affected because it was a film, not because I was in it. She liked it as a film and she recommended it to her girlfriends and they’re going to see a screening of it this week. She was very taken with it and I hope the older children are, too," Gene told journalist Bobbie Wygant in 1984.