Sally Kirkland, renowned for her Oscar-nominated performance in the 1987 indie film Anna, has passed away. Her agent, Michael Green, told Variety that the actress died on Tuesday in California. She was placed in hospice care last week after suffering a fall in her bathroom, injuring her ribs and foot. Previously, she had been battling a bone infection that had spread to her bloodstream and was also dealing with dementia. Kirkland was 84 years old.

Kirkland’s acting journey began with numerous off-Broadway productions and experimental theater pieces, before she became a part of Andy Warhol’s The Factory in the early 1960s. Her cinematic debut came in 1964 with Warhol’s The 13 Most Beautiful Women. Over the subsequent years, she featured in several notable films including Blue, Cinderella Liberty, The Sting, The Way We Were, A Star Is Born, and The Georgia Peaches, and appeared on popular TV series such as Hawaii Five-O, Kojak, Three’s Company, Starsky & Hutch, and Charlie’s Angels. Her breakout leading role came in the 1984 horror movie Fatal Games where she portrayed Diane, an athletic coach.

In 1987, Kirkland delivered a memorable performance in Yurek Bogayevicz’s Anna, playing an aging actress who becomes a mentor to a younger actress, portrayed by Paulina Porizkova. Despite critical acclaim, Kirkland had to mount a grassroots campaign for Oscar recognition, even seeking help from Andy Warhol, who then had a talk show, according to Variety. “At the Oscars, amidst all the movie stars stepping out of their limousines, there I was, feeling like Cinderella. It was thrilling to be nominated alongside such admired actresses—Meryl, Glenn, Holly Hunter, and Cher, whom I had rollerskated with in the ’70s,” she recounted in a 2012 The Huffington Post interview. “For someone from the indie film scene who has worked diligently for years outside the major studio system, to stand up and be recognized—it’s a testament to the spirit of Hollywood,” she added. For her role in Anna, Kirkland was honored with a Golden Globe and an Independent Spirit Award.

Kirkland’s career continued to flourish well beyond her work in Anna. She took on roles in both films and TV series, including JFK, Bruce Almighty, Hope For The Holidays, Roseanne, Valley Of The Dolls, and Felicity, continuing to demonstrate her versatility and commitment to her craft. As recently as 2024, she starred in an independent film titled Sallywood, where she played a version of herself.