Clint Eastwood, who directed and starred with Hackman in 1992’s Unforgiven, said in a statement to Deadline: “There was no finer actor than Gene. Intense and instinctive. Never a false note. He was also a dear friend whom I will miss very much.”

Director Francis Ford Coppola, actor Viola Davis and director Paul Feig are among those paying tribute to Gene Hackman after his death at age 95

Francis Ford Coppola, Tom Hanks and more are paying tribute to Oscar-winning actor Gene Hackman, "one of the true giants of the screen."

Gene Hackman, the Oscar-winning 'Unforgiven' and 'French Connection' actor who was an onscreen fixture for 40 years, has died at 95.

One of the first major film stars to break out in the 1970s, Gene Hackman was the epitome of New Hollywood. An actor with livewire intensity, he had a grit and brusqueness that few others could ever match,

He, his wife and a dog were found dead in their New Mexico home. His superb body of work included 'Bonnie and Clyde,' 'I Never Sang for My Father,' 'The Conversation,' 'Hoosiers' and 'Unforgiven.'