Diane Ladd, Wild at Heart actress, passes away at 89
The Oscar-nominated star of Rambling Rose and Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore leaves behind a seven-decade legacy.
American actress Diane Ladd, a three-time Academy Award nominee known for her portrayals in Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore, Wild at Heart, and Rambling Rose, has died at age 89, her daughter Laura Dern confirmed on Monday.
Ladd passed away at her home in California, surrounded by family. The actress built a remarkable career spanning more than seventy years, often portraying strong, complex Southern women whose resilience mirrored her own.
A Hollywood lineage and lasting bond
The daughter of a Mississippi veterinarian and an actress, Ladd began performing on stage in the 1950s before transitioning to television and film. She appeared in classics such as White Lightning (1973), Citizen Ruth (1996), and HBO's Enlightened (2011), where she once again played Dern's on-screen mother.
In 1991, Ladd and Dern made history as the only mother-daughter duo ever nominated for Oscars for the same film (Rambling Rose).
Beyond acting, Ladd was also a writer and director, and in 2023 co-authored the memoir Honey, Baby, Mine: A Mother and Daughter Talk Life, Death, Love with Dern. The book stemmed from the deep conversations the two shared during daily walks after Ladd was diagnosed with a lung disease, walks that, as Dern said, "helped bring my mother back to life."
"A Renaissance woman"
Over her career, Ladd appeared in more than 120 film and TV roles, earning three Emmy nominations and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, alongside Bruce and Laura Dern.
Producer Barbara Boyle once called her "a Renaissance woman," praising her insight, creative drive, and emotional intelligence, qualities that defined both her art and her life.
Ladd's legacy endures through her timeless performances and through Laura Dern, who once said of her mother: "She just shows up like that in life. She doesn't care what anybody thinks."
