🔗 Share this article

This Oscar-nominated actress Diane Ladd left us aged 89.

This star, with filmography spanned Chinatown, passed away at home in California’s Ojai. This announcement was shared via an announcement shared by her daughter, Oscar-winning actor her daughter Laura Dern.

Dern, who performed alongside her mom in several movies including Wild at Heart, referred to her as “my incredible hero and my profound gift being my mom”, writing that she was by her side as she died.

“She was the most wonderful grandmother, mother, daughter, performer, creative along with compassionate soul that only dreams could have seemingly created,” she stated. “We were fortunate to know her. Her spirit soars with angels.”

Beginnings and Rise to Fame

Ladd’s early career included small roles in TV shows including The Fugitive while that decade had her appearing next to the legendary Jack Nicholson in Chinatown.

That very year, the year 1974, she performed alongside Ellen Burstyn in Scorsese’s celebrated dramatic comedy Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, a classic. Her role earned Ladd her first Oscar nomination for best supporting actress.

1980s and Beyond

During the eighties, she starred in crime thriller the movie Black Widow plus humorous film National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation and appeared on the show Alice, a television series derived from Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore.

In the subsequent decade, she received an additional supporting actress Academy Award nomination for her performance in David Lynch’s Wild at Heart, a cult classic where she played the parent of her biological child the character played by Dern. The following year she was awarded an additional nod for her acting in Rambling Rose, another movie which included Laura Dern.

“This was the picture that Princess Diana picked as her top choice, and she brought me and Laura to the UK for a royal premiere and a party in our honor,” Ladd shared of Rambling Rose. “She positioned herself between us, taking our hands, with tears, seeing us act.”

That decade featured performances in comedy The Cemetery Club joining her again with Burstyn, Primary Colors, a political story, a political comedy, featuring John Travolta and Payne’s Citizen Ruth, a dark comedy where she acted as Dern’s mother again. That period also brought her TV award nominations for work in Dr Quinn, Medicine Woman, Grace Under Fire, a sitcom and Touched by an Angel, a drama.

Working with Laura Dern

She kept appearing with Laura Dern in dramatic comedies Daddy and Them, the David Lynch project the movie Inland Empire and the series by Mike White dark comedy series Enlightened. She was also seen with Sandra Bullock, a star in the film 28 Days, Anthony Hopkins, a legend in The World’s Fastest Indian, a film plus Jennifer Lawrence in Joy.

Her later TV roles consisted of Ray Donovan plus Young Sheldon.

Behind the Camera

Ladd also wrote and directed the humorous movie the movie Mrs Munck featuring herself and previous spouse Bruce Dern, an actor. “Bruce is an excellent performer,” she mentioned. “I’m privileged to have directed him on a project. In fact, I’m the only woman in history who directed her former husband. I humorously say: ‘I advise females, if you want revenge, direct your ex-husband.’ But I’m only kidding.”

Personal Connections

She happened to be a family member of Tennessee Williams, who she called “a significant impact in my life”.

In 2018, doctors misdiagnosed Ladd with a pulmonary condition and told her life expectancy was six months yet she recovered completely when her daughter transferred her to another medical facility.

“When you use your pain and prevent it from festering similar to a wound, instead apply it to explore, to clarify the journey for personal and collective growth, then you are winning,” Ladd remarked.