Diane Keaton – 10 Best Roles in Her Career
Diane Keaton is a major figure in Hollywood cinema. She chose her mother’s maiden name for her stage name. It is difficult to imagine the last decades of American cinema without her. Born in 1946, the actress initially studied drama, which she gave up for cinema. She played her first major role on Broadway in the musical Hair, and her big screen debut was in the 1970 film Loves and Others. The door to her career was opened by her performance in the Broadway adaptation of Woody Allen’s play “Play It Again, Sam”. It was the beginning of one of the most outstanding duos in the history of cinema. Diane Keaton became the muse and star of Allen’s brilliant comedies of the 1970s, including the legendary Annie Hall, for which she received an Oscar, a Golden Globe, and a BAFTA award. She was nominated for an Academy Award three more times.
The actress excelled in both dramatic and comedic roles. She was brilliant in her portrayals of neurotic New York intellectuals, journalists fighting for their ideals, and fascinating mature women who refuse to give up on love. Diane Keaton was also a successful director. She made the documentary Heaven, the drama Family from Hell, the comedy Hot Line, and music videos. Privately, her partners included Woody Allen, Warren Beatty, and Al Pacino, but she never walked down the aisle. Diane Keaton died at the age of 79 on October 11, 2025, in Los Angeles. We recall the best roles of this great actress.
Diane Keaton’s best roles
1. ”Annie Hall” (1977)
“Annie Hall” is the movie that occupies the most important place in Diane Keaton’s oeuvre, as it brought her the most film awards and became the actress’s trademark. In Woody Allen’s comedy, Diane Keaton plays an eccentric singer in a New York nightclub who becomes entangled in a romance with New York comedian Alvy Singer (played by the director). The film is an example of the genre in which Allen became a true master – intellectual comedy, which ironically reflects the mental state of a contemporary Manhattan intellectual.
The character of Annie Hall herself is one of Diane Keaton’s iconic roles, not only because of its artistic value, but above all because of the blurring of the line between the character and her portrayer. Annie’s outfits were modeled on Keaton’s personal style. What’s more, the actress started a fashion trend that became almost universal among women after the film’s release. She revolutionized the approach to men’s clothing, which she successfully used, as Marlene Dietrich and Katherine Hepburn had done before her. Accessories such as hats and scarves were an important element for her, and her unique sense of fashion continues to inspire models and actresses to this day.
2. “Manhattan” (1979)
“Manhattan”, maintained in the same artistic and ideological climate as Annie Hall, is also a screen showcase for Diane Keaton and Woody Allen. The comedy depicts the emotional and professional dilemmas of television comedian Isaac, who is struggling with his life choices. Keaton plays Mary, the partner of the main character’s friend, with whom he unexpectedly falls in love. The actress plays the role of an independent journalist and feminist who arouses genuine fascination in men.
This black-and-white, extremely atmospheric film poetically builds the atmosphere of the New York metropolis and a somewhat sentimental aura. The excellent acting and intelligent dialogue are noteworthy. In addition, the amazing shots of New York and the music of George Gershwin further enhance the value of the film.
3. “The Godfather” (1972)
Diane Keaton’s role in Francis Ford Coppola’s “The Godfather” trilogy, based on Mario Puzo’s novel, has also gone down in cinema history. The story of the Italian mafia family Corleone is a masterpiece of gangster cinema, a picture of social and cultural changes in America, a drama of relationships, and a gallery of wonderful film characters. Keaton plays Kay Adams, the partner and later wife of Michael, played by Al Pacino. Diane Keaton rose to the challenge, creating a somewhat mysterious female character, aloof and keeping her distance from the mafia’s business, yet entangled in her husband’s activities.
Delicate, feminine, yet strong and charismatic, Diane’s character contributed to the success of the legendary trilogy and remains an integral part of it to this day.
4. “Looking for Mr. Goodbar” (1974)
Richard Brooks’ film “Looking for Mr. Goodbar” gave Diane Keaton the opportunity to play a significant and excellent female role. It is the story of Theresa Dunn, a teacher of deaf children who leads a very unusual lifestyle. She is constantly entangled in casual sex, alcohol, and drugs. The actress very credibly created the character of a girl torn between different roles, lost, searching for her place in reality, and at the same time escaping from it into stimulants and superficial erotic relationships. Keaton received a Golden Globe nomination for her performance.
An intellectual living in Manhattan, who was raised strictly by her despotic father, she is unable to find balance in her life. Her rebellion against rules is a manifestation of her contestation of everything that her puritanical parents embody.
5. “Reds” (1981)
The role of the real-life character Louise Bryant in the movie “Reds” earned Diane Keaton further Oscar and Golden Globe nominations. The American drama is set in the period leading up to the October Revolution in Russia, as well as during the events themselves. The main character in “Reds” is American writer John Reed (played by Warren Beatty), an ideological communist and well-known journalist. He and his wife Louise travel to Russia to observe the October Revolution up close. The fruit of this journey and the couple’s experiences was the book Ten Days That Shook the World, published in 1919.
Diane Keaton plays a feminist writer with left-wing views who supports her beloved in his political activities. At the same time, she portrays an independent woman full of passion and fervor, who is guided in her personal life by uncompromising convictions. This is also another film in which the actress appeared on screen with her then-partner, Warren Beatty.
6. “Crimes of the Heart” (1986)
Diane Keaton, accompanied by Sissy Spacek and Jessica Lange, are three cinema legends who starred in Bruce Beresford’s 1986 comedy-drama “Crimes of the Heart.” They play three sisters who meet after years of not being in touch for a rather peculiar reason – one of them ends up in prison for attempting to murder her husband. It turns out that the women are connected not only by blood, but also by a tragic childhood story, and each of them tries to cope with the traumatic experience in her own way.
This eccentric and unique trio are well-drawn female characters, but also a picture of complicated sisterly relationships, in which love and tenderness are mixed with jealousy and resentment from years ago. A feminine, funny, and worthwhile film with a compelling performance by Diane Keaton.
7. “Manhattan Murder Mystery” (1993)
In the 1990s, Diane Keaton reunited with Woody Allen on screen. She starred alongside him in his crime comedy “Manhattan Murder Mystery”. They played a middle-aged couple struggling with a crisis in their relationship. One day, Carol and Larry Lipton come to the conclusion that their neighbor has murdered his wife and decide to conduct a private investigation. However, instead of solving the mystery, the clues they uncover only serve to further obscure the whole affair.
Allen’s film is a return to his ironic, intellectual humor of the 1970s, the myth of New York, and the classics of 1950s crime cinema, led by Alfred Hitchcock’s “Rear Window”, to which the film’s plot directly refers.
8. ”Marvin’s Room” (1996)
Jerry Zaks’ “Marvin’s Room” is a warm psychological drama depicting complex family relationships. Diane Keaton plays Bessie, a woman who has devoted herself entirely to caring for her bedridden father. When she suddenly finds out that she has leukemia and needs a transplant, she decides to reconnect with her long-lost sister Lee (Meryl Streep). Lee and her teenage son Hank (Leonardo DiCaprio) come to Florida to help Bessie.
Diane Keaton was nominated for an Oscar for the third time for her convincing performance. The actress’s dramatic talent, depth of interpretation, and credibility in character building were appreciated.
9. ”The First Wives Club” (1996)
Hugh Wilson’s “The First Wives Club” is a funny comedy with an excellent cast. We can admire Diane Keaton, Goldie Hawn, Bette Midler, and Maggie Smith on screen at the same time. The friends meet on a very sad occasion—at the funeral of a friend who took her own life because of a broken heart. While reminiscing about their school days, the topic of their failed marriages imperceptibly comes up. It turns out that all three have had the painful experience of their husbands leaving them for younger women. So they come up with the idea of founding the First Wives Club, whose mission is to effectively make life miserable for their ex-partners and their new partners.
10. ”Something’s Gotta Give” (2003)
Undoubtedly one of the best roles in Diane Keaton’s career, which earned her Oscar nominations and a well-deserved Golden Globe. “Something’s Gotta Give,” directed by Nancy Meyers, is a great comedy about an aging bachelor named Harry. The man decides to spend an intoxicating weekend with his girlfriend, who is a decade younger, at her mother’s summer house. However, the idyll is unexpectedly interrupted by Harry’s heart attack, and then Diane enters the scene as the charming and attractive Erika, who, despite her mature age, turns out to be the greatest challenge in the life of the experienced playboy.
The on-screen duo of Diane Keaton and Jack Nicholson is a truly explosive pair, which today evokes almost emotion. Their on-screen chemistry, warm humor, and excellent dialogue highlight what a great actress Keaton was, who with ease and finesse was able to build a genuine, authentic female character who inspires admiration and sympathy.