Bill Murray remembers 'tough' and 'really difficult' co-star Gene Hackman: 'I suffered with him'

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Bill Murray is reflecting on his experience of working with Gene Hackman, describing his former co-star as a "tough" and "really difficult" actor.

Hackman, best known for his role in 'The Royal Tenenbaums,' was found dead at his Santa Fe home on February 26 at the age of 95, alongside his wife, Betsy Arakawa, and their pet dog.

Bill Murray says Gene Hackman  was 'really, really good'

Bill Murray, who starred alongside Gene Hackman in Wes Anderson’s 2001 family dramedy, recalled their time on set and the challenges Hackman faced while working with the young director and an unconventional cast.

Murray paid tribute to Hackman on 'The Drew Barrymore Show,' recalling the actor’s Golden Globe-winning performance in 'The Royal Tenenbaums.'

"It's a kind of a funny day today because, today, Gene Hackman passed away, who was the star of The Royal Tenenbaums, and he won a Golden Globe for it — although he didn't show up," Murray said in a clip from the show.

"But he was really good. The guy was really, really good," he added.

Murray reflected on Hackman’s perspective of Anderson, saying, "I sympathize with Gene because, to him, Wes Anderson was just a punk kid, and Gene's made some of the greatest American movies."

Bill Murray recalls Gene Hackman’s challenges on set

Bill Murray shared that Gene Hackman found aspects of filming difficult, particularly working with children, animals, and the late actor Kumar Pallana.

"So he was a little irritable. But he had to work with children, dogs, [actor] Kumar [Pallana] — who was an absolute mystery to all of us anyway," Murray said.

"They put him in very challenging positions to work, and so he just felt a lot of responsibility and kept thinking, 'What am I doing here with these people?'" he added.

Despite the challenges, Murray praised Hackman's performance, calling it "brilliant."

He added, "I watched him and I suffered with him, because I saw what he was going through. But his timing, his patterns, his rhythms were really, really advanced. He was very, very good."

Murray ended his tribute with a heartfelt farewell, "So goodbye, Gene. I hope you're well wherever you are."

Bill Murray calls Gene Hackman a 'tough nut'

In a seperate interview with the Associated Press, Bill Murray described Gene Hackman as a "tough nut" who was difficult to work with but respected his talent.

"He was really difficult, we can say it now, but he was a tough guy," Murray said.

"Older, great actors do not give young directors much of a chance. They're really rough on them, and Gene was really rough on Wes. I used to kind of step in there and just try to defend my friend," he added.

Murray recalled a particularly grueling moment on set when Hackman had to redo a scene multiple times due to another actor’s mistakes.

"I once watched Hackman do like 25 takes where he did it perfectly with an actor who kept blowing it every single time," Murray said.

"I was watching going, 'No wonder this guy wants to throttle people.' And then he gave an ordinary performance and the other actor got it right, and I thought Gene was gonna throw the guy off the ledge of the building," he said, as per Entertainment Weekly.