NEWSGene Hackman Could Be 'Difficult' to Work With and Was 'Really Rough' on 'The Royal Tenenbaums' Director Wes Anderson, Bill Murray Admits
Gene Hackman, Wes Anderson and Bill Murray all worked on 'The Royal Tenenbaums' together.
Gene Hackman's immense talent came with both pros and cons.
In a new interview conducted shortly after the actor's death, his The Royal Tenenbaums costar Bill Murray admitted the late movie star "was really good" but a "tough nut."
Gene Hackman was very talented but could be 'difficult' to work with, Bill Murray admitted.
"He was really difficult," Murray, 74, confessed to The Associated Press. "We can say it now, but he was a tough guy because older great actors do not give young directors much of a chance."
"They're really rough on them. And Gene was really rough on [director] Wes [Anderson]," he recalled of filming the 2001 flick. "And I used to kind of step in there and just try to defend my friend."
Murray explained Hackman could get frustrated with people on set.
The Ghostbusters alum gave an example of why Hackman — who was 95 when he was found dead inside his home — could cause trouble on set.
"I watched him once do like 25 takes where he did it perfectly with an actor who kept blowing it every single time," he recalled. "I was watching and was like, 'No wonder this guy wants to throttle people.'"
"Then he gave just sort of an ordinary performance, and the other actor got it right. And I thought Gene was going to throw the guy off the ledge of the building," Murray quipped.
The late Oscar winner was 'really rough' on director Wes Anderson, 55, when filming 'The Royal Tenenbaums,' Murray recalled.
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- Gene Hackman and Betsy Arakawa's Death Update: Police Reveal Items Taken From Pair's Home Amid Ongoing Investigation
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As OK! reported, Hackman, his 63-old-wife, Betsy Arakawa, and one of their three dogs were found deceased in their Santa Fe, NM, house when authorities conducted a welfare check on Wednesday, February 26.
The investigation into how they died is still ongoing and was labeled "suspicious" by the police for a number of reasons.
"The death of the two deceased individuals [was] suspicious enough in nature to require a thorough search and investigation because the reporting party found the front door of the residence unsecured and opened," a Santa Fe detective spilled in an affadavit.
"Deputies observed a healthy dog running loose on the property, another healthy dog near the deceased female, a deceased dog laying 10-15 feet from the deceased female in a closet of the bathroom, the heater being moved, the pill bottle being opened and pills scattered next to the female, the male decedent being located in a separate room of the residence, and no obvious signs of a gas leak," the findings read.
Hackman and his wife's bodies were found in their home on Wednesday, February 26.
Arakawa's body "showed obvious signs of death, body decomposition, bloating in her face and mummification in both hands and feet," the report revealed, noting Hackman's body showed similar signs.
Since the Oscar winner's sunglasses were found close to his body on the floor, police think he may have fallen.
The movie star's daughter Leslie Hackman insisted her father "was in very good physical condition" before his death despite his old age.
"He liked to do Pilates and yoga, and he was continuing to do that several times a week," she shared with Daily Mail. "So, he was in good health."
