Diane Keaton has impressed the audience with remarkable performances in timeless classics like The Godfather, Manhattan, and Reds. She has quite the collection of awards to her name including some very prestigious ones and why wouldn’t she? She’s Diane Keaton, after all. Diane Keaton redefined the modern heroine in cinema and brought absolute authenticity to every character she set out to conquer.
One of the finest works of Diane Keaton’s career so far has got to be the 1977 film, Annie Hall, where she played the titular character. The actress’ performance was so raw and well-received that she went on to win her first and only Academy Award. However, she starred in yet another brilliant film in the same year that was equally deserving of the nomination and many fans believe that she should’ve won an Oscar for this film instead.
Diane Keaton Won an Oscar for Annie Hall
Annie Hall saw Diane Keaton don oversized suits, ties, and hats, a unique fashion sense that contributed to making Annie one of the most unforgettable characters in the actress’ portfolio. Dealing with the complexities of love and life, Annie quickly found a place in the hearts of the viewers, be it critics or fans. Keaton starred opposite Woody Allen who also directed and wrote the screenplay of the film.
For her performance, she went on to receive a nomination at the 50th Academy Awards taking place in 1978. While her grand total of nominations at this prestigious ceremony is four, Annie Hall is the only film which she won the award for.
Sixteen years ago, the Oscars’ YouTube page uploaded the moment when Keaton’s name was announced as the winner and let’s just say that “adorable” is the perfect word to describe her reaction. She simply captivated us with that smile as the actress was unable to contain her excitement, and rightly so.
After collecting her award, Keaton stated,
Mercy. Well then, this is terrific. It’s simply terrific. Naturally I’m very honored to have been nominated with actresses like Jane Fonda and Shirley MacLaine and Anne Bancroft and Marsha Mason; this is something. Anyway, ‘Annie Hall’ was a wonderful experience for me and I just would like to say thanks to Woody, and thank you. Thank you very much.
This was Keaton’s very first Oscar nomination. She went on to be nominated in the Best Actress category 3 more times for Reds, Marvin’s Room, and Something’s Gotta Give. Unfortunately, she didn’t emerge victorious in any of them. As for Annie Hall, Allen also won the Best Director award.
Fans Believe Diane Keaton Should Have Won for Something Else
Of course, Keaton’s fans were and still are quite thrilled for the actress taking the victory home at the 50th Oscars. However, many of them strongly believe that she should’ve won for Looking for Mr. Goodbar, a crime drama that was released in the same year as Annie Hall.
The film was directed and written by Richard Brooks and was based on the namesake 1975 novel by Judith Rossner. It follows the story of school teacher Theresa Dunn who is dealing with her s-xual awakening all while trying to take control of her own life. Spoiler alert: the story does not end in her favor.
Regardless of the absence of a happy ending, Keaton’s performance was absolutely enjoyed by the viewers and her fans believe that this was the Oscar-worthy role instead of Annie Hall.
Fans of Looking for Mr. Goodbar showed their love for the film in the comment section of Keaton’s Oscar-winning moment video on YouTube. Take a look at what they had to say:
@coletaylor1491: Let’s get real. If she wasn’t nominated and won for Annie Hall, she would’ve been nominated and won for Looking For Mr. Goodbar. 1977 was her year. Phenomenal and iconic actress. Also a beauty!!
@joshualafferty4567: In my mind she won this for “looking for Mr Goodbar, that was an outstanding performance.
@michaelmuldowney8: Lovely performance – but the best performance of 1977 was ALSO from Diane Keaton – in LOOKING FOR MR. GOODBAR. Its likely that it made the final five – but Academy rules state that a performer cannot have two separate performances nominated in the same category
@drstranger7430: The odds were definitely on her favor in 1977. Created timely yet classic pictures Annie Hall and Looking for Mr. Goodbar. I personally think this award was meant for her performance in the latter.
@trumancapote9097: DIANE KEATON won in the right year but for the WRONG film. She should have been nominated and won for LOOKING FOR MR. GOODBAR where her acting had more range and depth.
Honestly, we are just glad Keaton got the recognition she deserves! What about you? Do you believe Annie Hall was the right choice for the Oscar nomination or should Looking for Mr. Goodbar have been the one up there?
You can rent/buy Annie Hall on Prime Video.
