Gene Hackman and wife Betsy Arakawa’s lonely resting place marked only by a conch shell…as his three children battle over his $90M fortune one year after their shocking deaths

A barren field of grass under a tree adorned with wind chimes and adorned with a single shell.

Now the Daily Mail can reveal that this unassuming plot is the final resting place of Hollywood great Gene Hackman and his wife Betsy Arakawa.

A year after the acting titan’s death, there is still no plaque marking the spot and no evidence of any well-wishers coming to commemorate the anniversary of his death with a simple bunch of flowers.

But with Hackman gone, the battle over his will continues, with court documents obtained exclusively by the Daily Mail showing that it also deliberately excluded his three adult children, who were estranged at the time of his death.

Hackman, 95, and Arakawa, 65, were found dead by maintenance workers at their home in Santa Fe, New Mexico, on February 26 last year.

Arakawa was last seen alive at the Santa Fe CVS on February 11, 2025, and was last heard from on February 12, when she called the doctor complaining of breathing problems.

This is the plot unmarked — with only a conch shell — under a tree at the Rivera Funerals, Cremations and Memorial Garden in Santa Fe, New Mexico, a year after Hackman and Arakawa’s deaths.

The couple were buried in a quiet part of the memorial garden in a private ceremony attended by Hackman’s three children.

The 65-year-old patient died later that day from complications of hantavirus, a respiratory disease caused by rats, according to the Santa Fe Medical Examiner.

Tragically, Hackman, who had Alzheimer’s disease, continued to live in the house for a week after Arakawa’s death, before dying himself on February 18, before he knew what had happened.

A month after their deaths, the couple were buried together under a tree on the lawn of Santa Fe Memorial Gardens in a secret ceremony attended by Hackman’s three children, Christopher, 66, Elizabeth, 64, and Leslie, 59.

None of the three have chosen to mark their father’s grave so far, but court records show the trio have applied for ‘interested party’ status in the probate case surrounding their father’s will and his estimated $80 million fortune.

Last month, that fortune increased by $6.25 million when Hackman’s 53-acre estate in Summit Santa Fe (an affluent gated community) was sold, exactly one year after the acting giant’s remains were discovered.

The buyer will inherit the 13,000-square-foot main property, as well as a three-bedroom guest house and the studio where Hackman loved to paint.

The plot remains intact and the same wind chimes hang from a nearby tree over the grassy area where they were laid to rest a year ago.

Last year: Daily Mail photos exclusively revealed the patch of land following their funeral, with the same shell under the tree but on top of a paperback book.

Hackman’s estate also netted another $3 million windfall in December when 400 items of memorabilia and personal items belonging to The Birdcage actor were auctioned at Bonhams in New York.

Included in the sale was Hackman’s triple Golden Globe award for her roles in The Royal Tenenbaums, Unforgiven and The French Connection.

Also on the auction block were memorabilia from his film career, the 1988 horror movie The Silence of the Lambs, and charcoal drawings Hackman created in his home studio in Santa Fe.

Other works of art included a bronze nude by French sculptor Auguste Rodin and Figure on a Pier by modernist artist Milton Avery.

Andrew Huber, Bonham’s head of 20th and 21st century art, said before the sale: “These are prestigious works of impeccable provenance, further enhanced by their association with one of the greatest actors of our time.”

‘Hackman was not just a collector, he was an artist himself, and his approach to collecting reflects the care, aesthetic sensitivity and discipline evident in his own artistic practice.’

Gene Hackman’s daughters, Elizabeth and Leslie, were seen leaving a Denny’s restaurant near Burbank, California, the day after their father was found dead. The two sisters, along with Hackman’s son Christophe, are now fighting over his $90 million fortune

Hackman and Arakawa were found dead in their home in Santa Fe, New Mexico, in February 2025.

Hackman was best known for his roles in The Royal Tenenbaums, Unforgiven and The French Connection (pictured).

Despite his success in Hollywood, Hackman’s personal life was tumultuous, and he became estranged when all three of his children from his thirty-year marriage to Faye Maltese died.

As a result, a copy of the will obtained by the Daily Mail shows that Hackman chose to leave out the trio altogether, instead leaving his entire fortune to Arakawa, whom he married in 1991.

Arakawa’s own will, also obtained by the Daily Mail, does not mention his children and instead requests that his assets be left to charity.

Probate proceedings are pending for both Hackman and Arakawa, and trustees continue to pay off credit card debts; The last time a bill was paid was on January 26 for $1,800.

Hackman’s estate was also involved in a second civil lawsuit against the Santa Fe Medical Examiner’s Office; In this case, the trustee asked the board not to publish photographs taken at the scene of Hackman’s death.

As in the probate case, all three of Hackman’s children filed to intervene in the case; The file included a long motion imploring the authorities not to publish photographs of their father after his death.

This case was later closed due to inaction.