The Only Major Actors Still Alive From Chinatown
"Chinatown" is one of the great masterpieces of American cinema. As a period piece, it cries out with nostalgia for a bygone past while commenting on the aimlessness of this very pursuit. Like the other accomplished neo-noirs of the New Hollywood movement (namely Robert Altman's "The Long Goodbye"), its detective story is disjointed and dreamlike. It is not a neat and satisfying narrative like a classic noir. Instead, it meanders fearlessly and aimlessly into the uneasy unknown.
Although it earned its only Oscar for its screenplay, it's hard to imagine "Chinatown" being half as good as it was without the unforgettable performances of its main cast. Sadly, as the 1974 film ages into legendary status, so too do the actors that made it so legendary.
Not every actor who made the 1974 mystery movie so great has lived to see it reach its 50-year anniversary in 2024. However, some of the greatest actors in the film are still alive today. In fact, many of them were working up until very recently — and some might even have a project or two on the horizon for us yet. Luckily for you, I did the digging so you don't have to.
Jack Nicholson (J.J. Jake Gitties)
If you needed convincing that Jack Nicholson is the best actor of all time, his performance as the hapless detective in "Chinatown" earned him his third Academy Award nomination, all before age 40. The actor went on to win his first Oscar the following year for "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest," a success that he followed up in subsequent decades with "Terms of Endearment" in '84 and "As Good as It Gets" in '98.
Between 1970 and 2003, Nicholson earned no less than 12 Oscar nominations, making him the male actor with the most Oscar nominations of all time. However, it's safe to say that "Chinatown" remains one of the proudest roles of his career — he even reprised it in a self-directed sequel in 1990, "The Two Jakes," penned by the original film's Oscar-winning screenwriter Robert Towne.
Nicholson is still alive in January 2024 at age 86. However, the "Shining" star has not worked since 2010. He acted for many decades and continued to stay at the top of his craft until the very end. One of the most notable roles in his storied career was in "The Departed," just a few years before he stopped acting. One of his last films was a supporting role in the 2010 Joaquin Phoenix-led "I'm Still Here," directed by Casey Affleck (brother of Ben).
Although it's sad that we may never see Nicholson in a new project, we have years and years of excellent work to look back on. Few actors have as lengthy and impressive a filmography as he. Not only has Nicholson been in some of the best films in cinematic history, "Chinatown" included, but he has also given outstanding performances in each of these modern classics. Nicholson is a certified legend, and it's safe to say that he has earned his retirement.
Faye Dunaway (Evelyn Cross Mulwray)
This "Chinatown" star was a certified darling of the New Hollywood cinematic movement. Faye Dunaway's breakout role as the titular female lead in "Bonnie and Clyde" earned her an Oscar nomination in 1968, as did her performance in "Chinatown" in '74. She finally managed to snag the win two years later in 1976 playing Diane Christensen in the widely-acclaimed Sidney Lumet film "Network." Dunaway was the it-girl of the American film renaissance, and her incomparable talent is part of what made these films so unforgettable.
The "Mommie Dearest" star is still alive and well at age 82 in January 2024. After taking the first extended break of her long and accomplished career from 2010 to 2016, she appeared as herself in the satirical series "Documentary Now!" Dunaway acted onscreen as recently as 2022, playing the female lead opposite Kevin Spacey in "The Man Who Drew God."
Dunaway's role in "Chinatown" almost went to Jane Fonda, per GQ, but Nicholson convinced the studio to hire the "Bonnie and Clyde" star instead. Although Fonda is an incredible actor in her own right (who is also still working today at age 86), the studios made the right decision by listening to Nicholson. It simply wouldn't be "Chinatown" without Dunaway.
Diane Ladd (Ida Sessions)
Although her performance didn't get a lot of critical attention, Ida is easily one of the strongest characters in "Chinatown," much to the credit of actor Diane Ladd's portrayal. Ladd is a three-time Oscar nominee who has also appeared in films by Martin Scorsese and David Lynch.
Her career in film and television began with single-episode appearances in forgotten '50s shows like "The Secret Storm." The same year Ladd appeared in "Chinatown," she also earned an Academy Award nomination for her supporting role in "Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore."
In 1967, she gave birth to Laura Dern with husband and fellow actor Bruce Dern. Their daughter would follow in their footsteps, also starring in Lynch films along with blockbusters like "Jurassic Park."
As of January 2024, Ladd is alive at age 88. The most recent film she appeared in was released in 2022, and it's unclear if she has any more projects on the horizon. Up until 2022, she starred in the Hallmark drama series "Chesapeake Shores" and recently made a cameo in the hit sitcom "Young Sheldon."
With a body of work spanning comedies like "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation" to indies like "Wild At Heart," it's safe to say that Ladd covered a lot of ground and showed a lot of range in her decades-long career. She might very well be one of the most underrated actors of her generation.
Belinda Palmer (Katherine)
Not a whole lot is known about the actor who played the unfortunate Katherine of "Chinatown." Roman Polanski's 1974 neo-noir is among her handful of acting credits, which include some lesser-known films like "The Winds of Autumn" and "Clay Pigeon." She only acted for a handful of years, between 1970 and 1978, before leaving the spotlight. Belinda Palmer is credited as a production secretary in the 1979 college comedy "King Frat," but that seems to have been her last time in front of or behind the camera.
Palmer is presumably alive in January 2024. There is no available information about her age, but she looks to be in her teenage years in "Chinatown." Although her death has not been reported, it's possible that being out of the spotlight for so many years has caused her passing to go unreported. Either way, it's safe to say that we cannot expect to see Palmer back on the silver screen any time soon.
James Hong (Evelyn's Butler)
James Hong began his decades-long career in film and television back in 1954. He earned his breakout role in 1957 in the Chinese-American detective series "The New Adventures of Charlie Chan," an early entry into Hollywood's kung-fu trend and a favorite of my late grandfather's. He continued to play mostly smaller roles with single appearances on television shows of varying success into the '60s and '70s. His role in "Chinatown" was one of his first in a feature-length theatrical film, and it would be far from the last.
"Chinatown" might be half a century old in 2024, but at age 94, Hong is still giving some of the most significant performances of his career. As recently as 2022, he starred in the Oscar-sweeping sci-fi flick "Everything Everywhere All At Once" (the very same year he got a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame). In the later years of his life, he has primarily worked in voice acting, having starred in the animated "Kung Fu Panda" film series and spin-off television shows as Po's zany father Mr. Ping. Besides these two roles, he is perhaps best known for his single-episode character acting in sitcoms like "King of Queens" and "The Big Bang Theory." Due to Hollywood's longstanding racial bias, Hong has very rarely played the leading man, despite his impressive filmography. He has helped pave the way for minority representation in American films, and, incredibly, he lived to see the progress that he has helped create with "Everything Everywhere All At Once."
He might be the oldest actor on this list, but you haven't seen the last of Hong yet. The "Big Trouble in Little China" star has three projects slated for release in 2024, including a fourth entry into the "Kung Fu Panda" film series.