The Real Reason Gene Hackman Had To Quit Acting

The death of "Superman" star Gene Hackman at the age of 95 has all of Hollywood looking back on and celebrating the two-time Academy Award winner's storied career. It has been over 20 years since the actor, beloved for his roles in "The French Connection," "The Conversation," "Unforgiven," and other films, last appeared in a new movie, the critically lambasted 2004 comedy flop "Welcome to Mooseport" (his third worst movie, according to Looper's ranking of Hackman's filmography). He spent his last two decades writing historical novels and occasionally narrating TV documentaries about football and the military.

Hackman explained why he withdrew from acting when asked by Reuters reporter Iain Blair in 2008 whether he missed it, answering, "I miss the actual acting part of it, as it's what I did for almost 60 years, and I really loved that. But the business for me is very stressful. The compromises that you have to make in films are just part of the beast, and it had gotten to a point where I just didn't feel like I wanted to do it anymore."

But Hackman giving up acting wasn't just a response to decades of frustrations with the business — it was a medical necessity. "The straw that broke the camel's back was actually a stress test that I took in New York," Hackman explained in a 2009 interview with Empire. "The doctor advised me that my heart wasn't in the kind of shape that I should be putting it under any stress."

Gene Hackman first hinted at his retirement from acting on a "Larry King Live" interview broadcast July 7, 2004. When King asked about his next film projects, Hackman responded, "I don't have a project, Larry. If you have a script, I'll read it ... It's probably all over." He confirmed his retirement from acting in 2008 while doing press for his Civil War novel "Escape from Andersonville," co-authored by Daniel Lenihan.

Hackman's last truly iconic performance, as Royal Tenenbaum in the 2001 Wes Anderson film "The Royal Tenenbaums," might have been his breaking point. Anderson wrote the role for Hackman specifically — something the actor typically resisted. Hackman took the part mainly due to his agent's enthusiasm for the script. The star initially feared he couldn't connect with the nasty patriarch, while his director and co-stars would later claim he got a bit too into that nastiness on set, screaming and hurling insults. In light of that rough experience, it seems Hackman picked the right time to quit Hollywood for good and get his stress levels down.