Diane Keaton Named This 1972 Classic The Strangest Role Of Her Career

Legendary actress Diane Keaton has sadly died at the age of 79, but she won't be forgotten. I first remember seeing Keaton in "The Godfather" films, where she played Michael Corleone's (Al Pacino) girlfriend-to-wife-to-ex, Kay Adams-Corleone. "The Godfather" was only her second feature credit; she'd come up on Broadway in the 1960s, appearing in "Hair" and Allen's "Play It Again, Sam" and winning a Tony award for the latter.

As a comedy and stage actress, Keaton hadn't expected to act in a movie like "The Godfather." The only other feature film she'd been in before was the romcom "Lovers and Other Strangers," as different from "The Godfather" as could be. She thought of herself as a comedy actress and had never even heard of Mario Puzo's original novel "The Godfather" before deciding to audition. 

Speaking to People for the movie's 50th anniversary in 2022, Keaton recalled how it was just one of many auditions that her younger self did. And yet, it changed her life:

"I think the kindest thing that someone's ever done for me... is that I got cast to be in 'The Godfather' and I didn't even read it. I didn't know a single thing. I just was going around auditioning. I think that was amazing for me. And then I had to kind of read the book."

That same year, Keaton shared a video on Instagram recounting her memories of her "Godfather" audition.

"I performed the script that was given to me and then I left. And then later I heard that Francis Coppola wanted me to play the part and that's when I realized, that was one of the strangest things that ever happened to me in my whole life, because what the heck?

From there, Coppola had Keaton audition together with Pacino. The director recognized Keaton's talent and understood he needed a great actress as Kay to bounce off of his leading man.

One of the most famous lines from "The Godfather" is "an offer you can't refuse." Think, though, what scene does that line come from? The opening wedding sequence, where Michael is talking with Kay about how his father Vito (Marlon Brando) got his Frank Sinatra-inspired godson Johnny Fontaine (Al Martino) a music career by threatening a band leader. Watch as Kay's face shifts during that scene; Michael holds back sharing details as long as he can, but there's a curious light in Kay's eyes so she keeps pushing, innocently. Then her smile subtly falls when Michael explains the "offer" was a gun to the head.

This comes back around at the ending of "The Godfather," which Coppola entrusts to Keaton. Michael lies to Kay and professes innocence to ordering the murder of his treacherous brother-in-law, Carlo (Gianni Russo), and Kay believes him ... for about 30 seconds. Then she sees Michael's capos bowing to him before one closes the door on her. Kay won't look away even as the horror seeps in, so Michael shuts her out.

Keaton gets a more explosive scene in "The Godfather Part II" when her marriage implodes. She spends the movie weary of Michael, who grows more ruthless by the day, and eventually reveals she'd previously had an abortion because she didn't want to bring another child into his life.

"The Godfather" is all about Michael's corruption from Corleone family white sheep to the don. That story demands Kay's perspective, i.e. an outsider to the criminal world who loves Michael but has the moral clarity to recognize a monster. You don't get Karen Hill, Carmela Soprano, or Skyler White without Kay Corleone.

Keaton's importance to "The Godfather" films sometimes gets overshadowed by the towering performances of her male co-stars — especially Pacino, with whom she shares so much of her screentime. One should remember that, without the right scene partner, even the best actors can flail. No-one ever had that problem acting against Diane Keaton.