Diane Keaton, best known for her roles in romantic comedy movies, has died at age 79, as confirmed by People.
According to the publication, further details are not available, as her loved ones have requested privacy.
Her career took off with her role in Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather, as well as her appearances in Woody Allen’s projects, including a film version of Allen’s Broadway play Play It Again, Sam (1972), Annie Hall (1977), and Manhattan (1979).
She won the Oscar for Best Actress in a Leading Role for her portrayal of the title character in Annie Hall at the 1978 Academy Awards.
Her decades-long career also included acclaimed romantic comedies, such as Hugh Wilson’s The First Wives Club (1996), as well as Father of the Bride and its sequel, and Nancy Meyers’ classics, including Something’s Gotta Give (2003) and Bill Holderman’s adaptations of the Book Club series.
In her private life, while she’s been romantically linked to some A-list superstars throughout her career, Diane never married and famously remained single for 35 years.
“Today I was thinking, I’m the only one in my generation of actresses who has been a single woman all her life,” she told People in 2019. “I’m really glad I didn’t get married. I’m an oddball. I remember in high school, this guy came up to me and said, ‘One day you’re going to make a good wife.’ And I thought, ‘I don’t want to be a wife. No.'”
Talking about why she remained single for 35 years, she told Friends star Lisa Kudrow in 2021 that she didn’t want to sacrifice her independence. “It goes back to my mother, because, for me, most everything does. I love my dad, of course—that goes without saying—but she was always there, and he was always working. He was working hard, and he was really interesting. And he loved her, too. She had four kids, and I was the firstborn. I saw how much she gave up,” she said.
Regarding Diane’s health, a source exclusively told People, in recent months: “She declined very suddenly, which was heartbreaking for everyone who loved her. It was so unexpected, especially for someone with such strength and spirit.”
Diane is survived by her children, daughter Dexter, and her son Duke, whom she adopted in 1996 and 2001.
Speaking of being a mom to Ladies’ Home Journal (via People), she said, “Motherhood was not an urge I couldn’t resist, it was more like a thought I’d been thinking for a very long time. So I plunged in.”
We reached out to representatives for Ms. Keaton, and we’ll let you know if we hear back.