Robert De Niro and Al Pacino are both recipients of the AFI Life Achievement Award and now their “Godfather” co-star Diane Keaton is joining their ranks. AFI announced today that Keaton will be honored at a gala tribute on June 8, 2017 that will eventually air on TNT and Turner Classic Movies.
In a release from the institute, Sir Howard Stringer, Chair of the AFI Board of Trustees, remarked, “Diane Keaton is one of the most beloved leading ladies of American film. Peerless in her mastery of both comedy and drama, she has won the world’s heart time and again by creating characters of both great strength and vulnerability. Her career as a director and producer is even further evidence of her passion for the art form and her seemingly boundless talents. AFI is proud to present her with its 45th Life Achievement Award.”
Keaton won the Best Actress Oscar in 1978 for Woody Allen’s “Annie Hall” and has earned three more nominations for “Reds,” “Marvin’s Room” and “Something’s Gotta Give” respectively. She’s a nine-time Golden Globe nominee and won twice for “Annie Hall” and “Something’s Gotta Give.” She’s starred in Alan Parker’s classic “Shoot the Moon,” the groundbreaking hit comedy “Baby Boom,” “The Father of the Bride” films and the blockbuster “The First Wives Club.”
She appeared in all three of Francis Ford Coppola’s “Godfather” films and collaborated with Allen six times including the aforementioned “Annie Hall,” “Sleeper,” “Interiors,” “Manhattan,” “Radio Days” and “Manhattan Murder Mystery.” She will be seen later this fall in the HBO series “The Young Pope” and she recently wrapped the indie “Hampstead” opposite Brendan Gleeson.
Behind the camera, Keaton’s directorial endeavors including 1995’s underrated “Unstrung Heroes” with Andie MacDowell and 2000’s “Hanging Up” with Meg Ryan and Lisa Kudrow.
AFI has handed out this honor 44 times since 1973. Some of the more recent winners include John Williams, Steve Martin, Jane Fonda, Mel Brooks, Shirley MacLaine and Morgan Freeman.