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This Academy Award-nominated actress Diane Ladd has died 89 years old.

This star, whose filmography featured Chinatown, died at her home at her Ojai, California home. This announcement was shared through a message shared by her child, Academy Award-winning star Laura Dern, her daughter.

Laura Dern, who appeared with her mom in several movies like Rambling Rose, described her as “my incredible hero and my precious gift being my mom”, stating that she was present during her final moments.

“She was the most wonderful mother, daughter, grandmother, performer, creative and caring individual that only dreams could have seemingly created,” she stated. “We were fortunate to know her. She is flying with her angels now.”

Initial Roles and Rise to Fame

Her initial acting years featured minor parts in television programs like Perry Mason whereas that decade featured her performing next to actor Jack Nicholson in the film Chinatown.

That very year, 1974, she appeared alongside Ellen Burstyn in the Martin Scorsese acclaimed dramatic comedy the movie Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore. Her role earned Ladd her initial Oscar nod for best supporting actress.

Later Decades

During the eighties, she appeared in the thriller Black Widow plus humorous film National Lampoon’s holiday comedy and appeared on the show Alice, a television series inspired by the film Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore.

In the following decade, she received an additional best supporting actress nomination for her part in the David Lynch film Wild at Heart, a cult classic where she acted as the mom of her biological child Dern’s character. The next year she was awarded a further nomination for her performance in the film Rambling Rose that also featured Dern.

“This movie that Princess Diana chose as her absolutely favorite, and she invited us to London for a royal premiere and a celebration dedicated to us,” Ladd recalled of Rambling Rose. “She sat with us, taking our hands, and crying, watching us perform.”

That decade featured performances in humorous films Cemetery Club reuniting her with Ellen Burstyn, the movie Primary Colors, a comedy about politics, featuring John Travolta and Payne’s the movie Citizen Ruth in which she portrayed Dern’s mother once more. That period also earned her nominations for Emmy Awards for performances in Dr Quinn, Medicine Woman, the show Grace Under Fire and Touched by an Angel, a drama.

Working with Laura Dern

She continued to star with Laura Dern in comedy drama the film Daddy and Them, the David Lynch project Inland Empire, a surreal film and Mike White’s satirical show Enlightened. She also appeared with Sandra Bullock in the film 28 Days, Anthony Hopkins, a legend in The World’s Fastest Indian and with Jennifer Lawrence in Joy, a biographical drama.

Subsequent TV appearances consisted of Ray Donovan, a drama and Young Sheldon.

Behind the Camera

Ladd also wrote and helmed the comedy film Mrs Munck which starred Diane Ladd and former husband actor Bruce Dern. “Bruce is a talented star,” she mentioned. “It was a privilege to guide him in a movie. Indeed, I’m the only woman in history who directed her former husband. I make a joke: ‘I tell women, if you seek payback, guide your former spouse.’ But I’m only kidding.”

Family Ties

She was additionally the third cousin of the great Tennessee Williams, who she called “a significant impact throughout my life”.

Back in 2018, Ladd was misdiagnosed with a respiratory illness and informed her life expectancy was six months but made a full recovery once her daughter transferred her to another medical facility.

“Should you harness your suffering and avoid letting it accumulate like an injury, rather utilize it to explore, to make the path clearer for you and those around, then you are winning,” Ladd expressed.