Gene Hackman and his wife Betsy Arakawa's deaths have sparked many mysteries, but it seems despite dying a week apart, the pair's demises shared one heartbreaking similarity.  Gene was discovered deceased at his Santa Fe, New Mexico residence alongside his wife Betsy Arakawa, and their pet dog Zinna. It is believed that Gene's advanced Alzheimer's played a part in his demise.

It appears that neither of the stars realised they were dying, after a recent autopsy indicated Betsy had amassed fluid in her chest at the time of her passing. It was recently brought to light that Betsy, presumed to have succumbed around February 11 due to Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, may not have fully grasped the gravity of her ailment in her final moments. Betsy passed away roughly one week before Gene, but was still calling massage therapists and her doctors office, as well as ordering oxygen tanks on Amazon. 

A physician at the medical practice where Betsy sought help revealed that she had reached out for medical assistance a few days prior to her passing, but initially did not show symptoms of Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome.

Dr. Josiah Child, who oversees Cloudberry Health, shared in an exclusive interview with Fox News Digital: "[Betsy] had actually made an appointment to have an initial visit with one of our doctors on the 12th."

He continued: "She called on the 10th saying that her husband was ill or wanted to take care of her husband. She wanted to cancel that appointment. She called back on the 12th and [looking for] advice. She said, 'I have some congestion and I just want some advice. What can I do for it.?'"

At that point, Betsy did not exhibit severe symptoms, as Dr. Child noted: "She had no shortness of breath or chest pain or fever or anything like that. Our receptionist spoke to the doctor and the doctor said, 'Well, I've never met her. We have to have an initial appointment."

Meanwhile, the autopsy also confirmed Gene had no food in his stomach and had high levels of acetone, hinting he did not eat once his wife had died. He also failed to feed their dogs, with Zinna dying of starvation. It appears that Gene was not aware of his wife's death, as his advanced Alzheimer's would have stopped him realising the severity of his situation.

An autopsy report confirmed that Gene was found not to have contracted Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, a condition that was determined to be behind his wife's death. These findings are documented in an autopsy report from the New Mexico Office of the Medical Investigator.

The coroner's findings concluded that heart disease was the fatal culprit, citing Gene's history with "congestive heart failure", and also struggled with "severe chronic hypertensive changes to his kidneys."