About ten minutes into ‘The Replacements’—a movie released in 2000—Gene Hackman’s character, Jimmy McGinty, asked Keanu Reeves’ washed-up quarterback Shane Falco if he knew who he was. “You’re that old coach from the ’80s,” Falco responded. Everyone knew McGinty, a legendary football coach. So when the Washington Sentinels team went on a strike, the owner hired McGinty to recruit a replacement team with a bunch of unsuccessful players, with the hope that they could limp into the playoffs.

It was a comedy movie, but it delivered many inspirational quotes. In one very important scene, the coach gave a speech: “There are some who will say that your accomplishments today will soon be forgotten, that you’re not real players, that this isn’t a real team. And I say that’s bullsh-t. Because as of today, you’re all professional football players. You’re being paid to play, and I want to you to remember that, because the men whose places you’ve taken forgot that a long time ago. Let’s bring it in. Let’s play some football.”

It is said that McGinty’s character was inspired by the Chicago Bears’ legend, Mike Ditka and Tom Landry of the Dallas Cowboys. But the man who portrayed the character of an interim head coach with his iconic fedora is no more. Post his grand Hollywood career, he relished a quiet time in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and settled there with his wife, Betsy Arakawa. But their home is now silent. As per reports, the couple and their pet dog were found dead in their home on Feb. 26. Hackman was 95 and his wife was 65.

A sheriff’s deputy said (as per the affidavit for a search warrant), “The circumstances surrounding the death of the two deceased individuals (are considered) to be suspicious enough in nature to require a thorough search and investigation.”

However, Santa Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza also stated that no signs of foul play were seen. Reports suggest that two other dogs were found in other parts of the property and were healthy. The actor’s family statement read: “It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our father, Gene Hackman and his wife, Betsy.”

“He was loved and admired by millions around the world for his brilliant acting career, but to us he was always just Dad and Grandpa. We will miss him sorely and are devastated by the loss.” The whole incident left Jimmy Johnson shocked, as he reminisced about his friendship with Hackman and Arakawa.

The Cowboys Super Bowl-winning coach took to Instagram and wrote: “Gene & Betsy were good friends & great people..Gene was so talented in at lot of ways RIP..,” and also shared an image where he was seen fishing with the actor.

While not much is known about Johnson’s friendship with Hackman, Dallas was a point of commonality. Back in 1993, football reporters spotted the actor quietly sipping on white wine in the Loews Santa Monica Hotel. “They told me the hotel would be crowded with a convention group — they didn’t tell me it was the Dallas Cowboys,” Hackman had shared. Interestingly, Jimmie Johnson was their coach back then, and the team was about to play the Super Bowl.

Hackman found himself amongst Cowboys Super Bowl mania and admitted that he was a fan too!

“I saw some games in Dallas in — 1966? Whenever we shot ‘Bonnie and Clyde,’” he had shared. “I’m a big fan of Emmitt Smith.”

When the team paraded past the actor, he was as excited as any other Dallas fan and proceeded to call out the names of the players.

“There’s Dave Wannstedt!”
“There’s Mark Stepnoski. There’s [Ken] Norton.”

As the Cowboys team walked away, he disappeared into the hotel bar once again. That year, the Cowboys won the Super Bowl 52-17 against the Buffalo Bills and Hackman became a small part of their franchise glory.

Gene Hackman could do in acting what Jimmy Johnson did in Dallas!

Gene Hackman could play anyone. From hard-nosed detectives to calculating villains, he wore every role like a second skin. His ability to disappear into characters was legendary—one moment he’s the unflinching Popeye Doyle in The French Connection, the next he’s the eccentric Royal Tenenbaum. If the NFL had an equivalent, it’d be Jimmy Johnson. The man took a 1-15 Cowboys squad and built a dynasty. Just like Hackman transformed every film he touched, Johnson reshaped football in Dallas, turning raw talent into champions.

However, Hackman portrayed characters similar to what Johnson was in the NFL. In ‘The Replacements’, McGinty’s players lost the first game. When the coach called a passing play, QB Falco chickened out and changed the call to a running play, which ended in a disastrous loss. But the newfound team worked hard on building chemistry and soon picked two victories.

They needed just one more win for the playoffs.

That’s when the team owner made a major change: Their original QB, Martel, will play the last game of the season. No amount of protests from the HC worked, and while Falco just accepted the decision, his coach told him he had heart. Lots of it.

When the game rolled up, Martel would make mistakes and blame it on the rest of his team. He was just a player; Not a leader. At halftime, the Sentinels trailed 17-0, and when the reporter asked coach McGinty what they needed to win the game, he said, “miles and miles of heart”. It was a message for Falco, who heard this on the television and rushed to the game.

Upon their QBs’ arrival, the rest of the team kicked Martel out of the locker room. They went back on the field with a renewed sense of hope and later walked away with a 20-17 win. That night, they didn’t receive any endorsement deals or victory parades; Just a locker room waiting to be cleaned out. But they also got a second chance at glory.

No wonder Hackman’s career is a 40-year highlight reel. He shared the screen with Hollywood’s elite—Al Pacino, Warren Beatty, and Robin Williams. He squared off against Christopher Reeve’s Superman as the iconic Lex Luthor.

The man who perhaps inspired many NFL players is no more. He is survived by his three children: Christopher, Elizabeth, and Leslie, who he shared with his ex-wife Maltese.