Diane Ladd’s special connection with Laura Dern: How the late Hollywood icon worked with her daughter in front of the camera

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Diane Ladd, the beloved Hollywood actress, frequently appeared in films alongside her daughter, Laura Dern, and together they even achieved a place in movie history.

I’ve been a fan of both of them for years, and it’s amazing to see all the incredible work they’ve done together! I especially loved them in films like The Siege at Ruby Ridge, Wild At Heart, and Citizen Ruth, and their appearance on the HBO series Enlightened was just brilliant. They’ve really built up an impressive filmography over the years.

In 1992, a mother and daughter made history as the first to both be nominated for acting awards for the same movie, Rambling Rose.

Laura Dern, now 58, fondly recalls the moment she learned of her and her mother’s Academy Award nominations. Speaking to Variety recently, she described getting a call from her publicist, Annette Wolf, who shared the exciting news about the film. Dern, who was just 21 at the time, shared that her grandmother joined them, making it a cherished family memory.

Dern began acting alongside her mother at a young age, appearing briefly in uncredited roles in the films White Lightning and Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore.

Although Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore was Laura Dern’s first film credit, she views it less as a true debut and more as simply being present on set alongside her mother and director, Martin Scorsese.

She described being on set as feeling like she was with her mother, thanks to Marty allowing her to observe. She even recalled enjoying an ice cream cone during the scene where Ellen Burstyn and Kris Kristofferson shared a kiss, as she told The Hollywood Reporter in 2014.

I was completely smitten—with both him and Kris Kristofferson! He was definitely my first crush. I remember just being starstruck, thinking how incredibly cool Kris Kristofferson was. Apparently, he needed nineteen takes for a scene, which meant I got to eat nineteen ice cream cones! I overheard Marty telling my mom that if I could eat that much banana ice cream without getting sick, I was destined to be an actress. I even used that story when I was eleven, telling my mom that Scorsese had said… [laughs]

The relationship was one that did not go unnoticed by Dern’s Wild at Heart co-star Nicolas Cage. 

In a 2023 interview on CBS Sunday Morning, the actress remembered an experience on the set of David Lynch’s Wild at Heart. She said Nicolas Cage quietly came up behind her and whispered, “That’s your mom—your actual mother.”

Dern was the one to confirm her mother’s passing on Monday.  

Polly Ladd, famous for playing Flo the waitress in the 1974 movie Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, passed away at her home in Ojai, California, at the age of 89.

Dern confirmed the devastating news in a statement to The Hollywood Reporter on Monday.

Actor Bruce Dern announced the passing of his mother, Diane Ladd, this morning at her home in Ojai, California. He described her as his hero and a cherished gift.

She described her as an extraordinary daughter, mother, grandmother, actress, and artist – a truly empathetic person who seemed like a figment of a beautiful dream. They felt incredibly lucky to have known her, and now believe she’s at peace, soaring with the angels.

Ellen Ladd was nominated for an Academy Award three times throughout her career. She received nominations for her performances in the films Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore (1974), Wild at Heart (1990), and Rambling Rose (1991).

The actor appeared in over 300 movies and television programs, including the 2004 ABC horror series based on the works of Stephen King.

Ladd is also well-known for his work in films like Something Wicked This Way Comes (1983), Ghosts of Mississippi (1996), 28 Days (2000), Charlie’s War (2003), and Joy (2015).

She was last seen on TV in the Hallmark series Chesapeake Shores, playing Nell O’Brien from 2016 until 2022. Her final TV movie was Gigi & Nate, released in 2022.

Throughout her successful career, she also wrote and directed the highly praised film, Mrs. Munck.

In 2018, Ladd received a dire prognosis: doctors said she had only six months to live. This followed a misdiagnosis of pneumonia, which was actually caused by exposure to poison spray drifting from a nearby farm.

That ended up constricting her esophagus.

Because Dern disagreed with the initial diagnosis and expected outcome, she moved the patient to a different hospital, and the patient ultimately made a complete recovery.

While Ladd was recovering, Dern was committed to helping her mother regain strength in her lungs. Doctors had suggested that regular walks could aid in her recovery.

Dern wanted to playfully challenge her mother while they walked, and she decided to record their talks to capture their interactions.

Those talks eventually led to their 2023 memoir, Honey, Baby, Mine, which explores themes of life, death, love, and even banana pudding.

According to The Telegraph, this book is a remarkably honest and entertaining Hollywood memoir – and surprisingly affectionate.

At one point in the book, the mother-daughter duo reminisce about Dern’s difficult teenage years.

‘Do you feel like I screwed you up?’ Ladd asks Dern. ‘Absolutely,’ Dern replies.

Ladd says he suspects the other person is remembering when he hit them. He explains that the person had been disrespectful, and he was already having a bad day. It happened when they were just ten years old and said something surprisingly mature while at the refrigerator, which made Ladd question his parenting.

Dern expressed her frustration that Ladd never apologized, recalling she was only fourteen years old at the time. She reminded her mother that Ladd seemed to be looking for someone to blame, especially since she was already unhappy with her job and wanted to return home.

In 2018, Dern admitted to People her mom tried to dissuade her from pursuing acting.

She recalled her mother saying, “Become a lawyer, a doctor, even a missionary helping those with leprosy—just please, don’t be an actress!” she thought with a smile.

Regardless, the pair ended up sharing the screen multiple times.

Dern was the second daughter of Ladd and her ex-husband, actor Bruce Dern, 89.

The couple’s first child, a daughter named Diane, tragically died at 18 months old after an accidental fall into a pool. Five years later, they welcomed another daughter, Laura.

Along with Dern, Ladd is remembered by her two grandchildren, Ellery Walker Harper, age 24, and Jaya Harper, age 20.

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2025-11-04 05:19