Diane Keaton explains why she couldn’t sustain a relationship

Acclaimed actress Diane Keaton is an onscreen favourite of many, and certainly seems like a warm and affable woman, however she makes no secret of her tendency towards being a bit of a loner. 

Earlier this year she surprised funnyman Jimmy Kimmel when she revealed during an appearance on his show that despite having a lot of celebrity acquaintances, she has no real friends – “not a single one” – and that no one had ever asked her to marry them. 

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She isn’t the least bit bothered by this situation, explaining to journalist Kate Finnigan in an interview for Fairfax Media that in this regard, she is much like her parents were. 

The 71-year-old explained that her father was a great “greeter” – “charming, great smile. But he could only sustain it for a short time.” 

“They were very charming but they weren’t very social people,” she said of her parents. 

“And that used to worry me when I was younger. ‘Gee, why aren’t there more people around?’ And now I’m totally them. Because I don’t want it for very long.

“And I remember Warren [Beatty] said to me, when I was with him, ‘You know, you’d make a great politician. You can do it for a coupla hours and then you gotta get out.’ And he’s dead right. I couldn’t sustain things that were more personal.” 

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As for her romantic relationships, while she’s had a few brief ties, there’s never been anything lasting, but she doesn’t feel that she’s missed out, after all, she’s spent almost 50 years playing someone’s love interest in movie after movie. 

“It’s been fabulous,” she told Finnigan.  

“It’s the perfect relationship. I don’t have to have the relationship but we tell these stories and then they leave. Perfect! I’ve got to play around with all different kinds of men.”

However, it was only later in life, when Keaton was 50, that she felt the need to have some more meaningful connections, and adopted her two children, now 21 and 16, which she say “forced” the engagement with people she feared she’d be lacking.

Are you a social person, or are do you prefer solitude like Keaton?