The last will and testament of the late Gene Hackman and his late wife, Betsy Arakawa, has been revealed two weeks after they were discovered dead in their home on February 26.
The Oscar winner, 95, had appointed Arakawa, 65, as the sole recipient of his entire estate, worth $US 80 million (approx. $127 million, as well as its personal representative, according to a trust agreement made September 22, 1995, obtained by People. The will itself was written 20 years ago, in June 2005.
In the event of Arakawa’s death before his, Hackman appointed attorney Julia L. Peters as his personal representative.
Arakawa’s will left most of her assets to her husband, according to TMZ, but also included a provision that said if their deaths occurred within 90 days of each other, it would be considered a simultaneous death. In this case all of her assets would go to charity.
There was no mention of his three children – Christopher, 65, Elizabeth, 62, and Leslie, 58, whom he shared with his first wife Faye Maltese – in his will.
However, Peters’ court documents filed alongside the Oscar winner’s will identify the three as his heirs.
This means that though they were not directly named in the will, given the unique circumstances of their father’s passing, Hackman’s children will likely be the beneficiaries of his estate.
TMZ reports that the eldest child, Chris, has retained the services of a trust and estate attorney, indicating that Hackman’s heirs may be contesting the will.
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Hackman and Arakawa were discovered dead in their home on February 26, with further investigation later revealing that Arakawa had died from hantavirus a week before her husband succumbed to a combination of severe heart disease, high blood pressure and advanced Alzheimer’s disease.
