Declared as one of the greatest sports movies in film history, the 1986 flick Hoosiers starred the late Gene Hackman as high school basketball Coach Norman Dale.
The famed film follows the story of the Huskers and how they went from small-town Hickory, Indiana to the state basketball championships. Hoosiers was loosely inspired by the real-life Milan High School basketball team, which won the Indiana state championship in 1954.
Following Hackman’s death at age 95 in February 2025, his former Hoosiers costar Brad Long recalled being “impressed” by the legendary actor on set during an interview with TMZ. Long, who made his acting debut with this particular movie, referred to Hackman as “unassuming” before the cameras started rolling.
“When he was in front of the camera, he became this person that just became that character. That’s a tribute to him,” Long added. “He had a really good sense of humor. I don’t know if he got all the credit that he deserved for that.”
Keep scrolling to see what the cast of Hoosiers is doing now:
