🔗 Share this article

The Oscar-nominated performer Diane Ladd passed away 89 years old.

This actor, with credits spanned Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, passed away at home in California’s Ojai. Her passing was announced in a statement by her child, Oscar-winning actor her daughter Laura Dern.

Dern, who starred with her mom in various films like Wild at Heart, referred to her as “my amazing hero plus my precious gift being my mom”, stating that she was present as she died.

“She was the greatest daughter, mother, grandmother, performer, creative and compassionate soul that felt like a dream come true,” she stated. “We were lucky to have her. She is flying with her angels now.”

Early Career and Breakthrough

Her initial acting years saw small roles in TV shows like Gunsmoke while the seventies saw her starring with Jack Nicholson in the classic Chinatown.

During that year, 1974, she appeared alongside Ellen Burstyn in Martin Scorsese’s celebrated film the movie Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore. The performance brought Ladd her initial Oscar nod in the supporting actress category.

1980s and Beyond

In the 1980s, she appeared in the thriller the movie Black Widow and humorous film National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation and also took part in the sitcom Alice, a sitcom inspired by her earlier movie.

In the following decade, she earned an additional supporting actress Academy Award nomination for her performance in David Lynch’s Wild at Heart where she acted as the parent of her real-life daughter Laura Dern’s role. A year later she was awarded a further nomination for her performance in Rambling Rose, another movie which also starred Laura Dern.

“This was the film that the late Princess Diana picked as her top choice, and she brought us to London for a premiere and a celebration for us,” Ladd said of Rambling Rose. “She positioned herself between us, grasping our hands, with tears, watching us perform.”

The 1990s included parts in the comedy The Cemetery Club bringing her back with Burstyn, the movie Primary Colors, a satirical film, starring John Travolta and the film by Alexander Payne Citizen Ruth where she acted as Laura Dern’s mom again. The decade also brought her TV award nominations for performances on Dr Quinn, the show Grace Under Fire and Touched by an Angel.

Partnerships with Her Daughter

She persisted in performing with her daughter in comedy drama Daddy and Them, the David Lynch project Inland Empire, a surreal film and the series by Mike White dark comedy series Enlightened, a TV series. She was also seen alongside actress Sandra Bullock in 28 Days, a movie, Anthony Hopkins, a legend in The World’s Fastest Indian plus Jennifer Lawrence in Joy.

Her more recent television parts featured Ray Donovan, a drama and Young Sheldon, a comedy.

Writing and Directing

Ladd also wrote and directed the comedy the movie Mrs Munck featuring herself and previous spouse actor Bruce Dern. “Bruce is a great actor,” she noted. “It was a privilege to guide him in a movie. Indeed, I stand as the only woman in recorded history to direct her ex-husband. I humorously say: ‘I tell women, if you want revenge, direct your ex-husband.’ Though I’m just teasing.”

Personal Connections

She was additionally a family member of the great Tennessee Williams, who she called “a significant impact on my life”.

In 2018, she received an incorrect diagnosis with a respiratory illness and told her life expectancy was six months but made a full recovery when her daughter shifted her to a new hospital.

“Should you harness your suffering and prevent it from festering like an injury, instead use it to explore, to make the path clearer for you and those around, then you are triumphing,” Ladd expressed.