Oscar-winning actor Gene Hackman and his wife Betsy Arakawa were found dead, along with their pet dog, at their home in Santa Fe, New Mexico in February 2025, sparking intense online speculation about the cause of death.

Weeks after two-time Oscar winning actor Gene Hackman and his wife were found dead in mysterious circumstances, it has been revealed that the latter died from a rare serious viral disease called Hantavirus.

Betsy Arakawa died from hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, a rare rodent-spread disease with a mortality rate up to 50% in the American Southwest, officials said.