What People Get Wrong This Week: Secret Tunnels Beneath Gene Hackman’s House
A recent YouTube video from The Ultimate Discovery channel makes some claims that may surprise fans of actor Gene Hackman. According to the video, FBI agents searching Hackman’s home after his death discovered a “hidden passage hidden behind the wall of the library” that led to a “huge, creepy underground warehouse” containing documents, antiques, old photographs and unidentified machine parts. The walls were covered in runes and symbols that seemed to be of ancient origin and could not be translated. Not only that, but the bunker connects to a larger network of tunnels “similar to the Parisian catacombs.”
It’s a pretty good story (if you can accept the idea that actor Gene Hackman is a character from a Lovecraft novel), but it’s not true . (I liked Gene Hackman in The Quick and the Dead, but he wasn’t that great.) At least there’s no reason to think that’s true. Neither the FBI nor local authorities have made a statement about the tunnels, and the YouTube channel Ultimate Discovery makes it clear that it is not telling the truth in its channel description, which reads:
“The content on The Ultimate Discovery is for entertainment purposes only… our information may not always be correct, current or complete. Always consult experts and do your own research.”
But nearly a million people watched the video, despite the disclaimer and how far-fetched the story appears at first glance. Claims about Hackman’s secret tunnels are repeated in TikTok videos , X-posts , and just about everywhere else. Judging by the comments, people believe this too. Videos (either created by artificial intelligence or from unrelated incidents) help, but any conspiracy theory involving secret tunnels is sure to make people freak out.
What’s with the tunnels?
Cave paintings dating back more than 40,000 years ago suggest that our ancestors used caves as religious sites. During the Roman Empire, followers of Mithra dug tunnels specifically for complex rituals and then swore an oath not to reveal what happened underground. There are approximately 170 miles of tunnels filled with corpses under Paris , most of them unexplored. Therefore, people always thought that something strange was happening under their feet. And they are often not wrong. Modern cities are built on complex, mysterious networks of utility tunnels, transport tunnels, etc., and you generally cannot visit them. While you can go to city hall and request civil planning documents describing the basements and sewers underneath your city, it’s easier to just fill in the blanks with what you want. Hence the prominent role of tunnels in modern conspiracy theories.
DUMB’s: Deep Underground Military Bases
Subterranean spaces are a key aspect of Pizzagate conspiracies, Lizard People conspiracies, Fourth Reich conspiracies and more, be it the non-existent basements under Italian restaurants in Washington, the claim that the National Park Service freed children from Mammoth Cave in Kentucky, or now the supposed tunnels under Gene Hackman’s house.
The video doesn’t explicitly say this, but if you’re of the conspiratorial mindset, you can probably see that Gene Hackman’s tunnels are connected to our nation’s DUMBS—deep underground military bases. The existence of a large, interconnected network of military bases beneath the United States is a common belief among conspiracy theorists. There are various ideas as to their purpose, but among the most widely accepted is that the Deep State is using DUMBS to transport and traffic children, and Hollywood people like Gene Hackman are somehow helping. Everyone needs this adrenochrome .
But the most persistent conspiracy theories often contain a kernel of truth, and there are indeed underground military complexes in the United States. Take for example the Cheyenne Mountain Complex , which was built under 2,000 feet of granite in Colorado in 1957. It was once the home of NORAD, as seen in War Games , but is now a US Space Force facility. Cheyenne Mountain is no secret, however: there were public tours there before 9/11, and if you know someone who works there, you can presumably still visit.
Very STUPID idea
Reality and conspiracy theories differ regarding the purpose and size of underground military installations. Reality says there are several, and they were built primarily so that the government could continue to function after a nuclear war (and likely as a show of force in the Cold War). Conspiracy theorists envision a vast, interconnected network of underground bases that allow for the covert transport of stolen children and/or lizard people from coast to coast. But the point of Cheyenne Mountain’s design is that it is not connected to anything else. Cheyenne Mountain is built to be self-sufficient.
Like most conspiracy theories, the myth is dispelled by asking a few basic questions. For example: Why would the United States spend time, money and effort building secret bases underground when we already have secret military bases located above ground? It’s much easier and cheaper to put up fences and guards in the desert – which is what we ’re doing . Wouldn’t a military plane, train, or some kind of truck be the best way to transport the bodies of aliens or whatever? Again, this is how we already transport secrets.
Gene Hackman – Seriously?
As for why conspiracy theorists have focused on Gene Hackman rather than Gene Hackman, your guess is as good as mine. Typically, entertainment industry figures featured in conspiracy theories are particularly politically outspoken and highly visible, such as George Clooney or Tom Hanks . Hackman was a lukewarm Hollywood liberal at best (he hated Nixon but supported Reagan), and he hasn’t made a movie since 2004, so he’s an odd target. Perhaps the initial uncertainty about how he died was enough to suggest a mysterious hidden world. But, as always, the reality is much duller than the conspiracy theorist’s fantasies: Hackman was 95 years old when he died of a heart attack, and underneath his house there was nothing more mysterious than a basement rec room.