Gene Hackman: Resurfaced interview sheds light on final performance

Few actors have retired at the top of their game. Daniel Day-Lewis is a notable exception, gracefully exiting the screen after Phantom Thread. Unfortunately, Gene Hackman didn't share that satisfying trajectory.

After more than 40 years of iconic roles, he bowed out with 2004's cringe-worthy comedy, Welcome to Mooseport.

By then, Hackman was in his mid-70s and a Hollywood veteran.

He knew a potential trainwreck when he saw one.

According to co-star Maura Tierney who spoke with The A.V. Club; Hackman had zero respect for director Donald Petrie ("How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days").

Tierney told The A.V. Club in a 2014 interview that while filming together, Hackman wasn't shy about sharing his displeasure, allegedly telling Petrie to "shut the f*ck up" and just handle the technical aspects of his job.

While Tierney joked that Welcome to Mooseport was the movie that ended Hackman's career, he cited health concerns as the primary reason.

A doctor's warning about his heart made the decision easy – even if a terrible film and an even worse director may have helped seal the deal.

Now 94 years old, Hackman has enjoyed a second act as a historical fiction writer. However, his cinematic legacy is extraordinary.

From his breakthrough in Bonnie & Clyde (which earned him an Oscar nomination) to his Oscar-winning performances in The French Connection and Unforgiven, few actors can rival his impressive body of work.

We can't forget favourites like Hoosiers, Mississippi Burning, Superman, and countless more.

He was last seen dining in New Mexico with wife Betsy Arakawa (62), using a cane. The couple dined at Pappadeaux’s Seafood Kitchen in Santa Fe, where the actor has lived since the 1980s.