Gene Hackman judge rules on death scene images after family argues ‘grotesque’ pictures could cause trauma

The public will not see videos or photos depicting the deceased bodies of Oscar-winning actor Gene Hackman and his wife Betsy Arakawa Hackman.

"What we're really talking of, Judge, is my client's father, who lay dead for some amount of time, and all of the grotesque pictures that go along with that and the conversations of deputies discussing that," a lawyer for Hackman's family said. "There is no limit to the trauma that could cause my clients for years to come with that information, as the media publicist already testified to, would likely show up on the internet or in podcasts etc."

Hackman's estate called the actor's longtime publicist to testify to the couple's level of privacy maintained during his lifetime. Susan Madore revealed Hackman would only allow two hours of press time for each movie he made. The Oscar-winning actor would often decline image and likeness requests for "commercial usages" and "news programming."