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Culture January 20, 2026

Rachel McAdams pays tribute to Diane Keaton in moving Walk of Fame speech

WATCH: Rachel McAdams gets stranded on deserted island in 'Send Help' trailer

Rachel McAdams officially has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. 

The Oscar nominee and actress, who is known for films like "The Notebook," "Mean Girls," "Spotlight" and more, was honored in a ceremony on Hollywood Boulevard by the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce on Tuesday. 

In a speech, McAdams paid tribute to some of her late co-stars including Diane Keaton, with whom she starred in the 2005 film "The Family Stone," and Gena Rowlands and Sam Shepard, with whom she starred in "The Notebook." 

"I'd like to thank the stars up above, down here," she said. "The legendary working actors who I was given the great gift to learn from. The ones who are no longer with us. To name a few, pioneering Gena Rowlands, the prolific Sam Shepard and my beloved Diane Keaton, who took me under her wing like I was her own daughter."

McAdams then mentioned the piece of advice that Keaton gave her about acting. 

"She taught me that no matter how long you've been doing this, you have to leave everything you've got on the table," she added. "Each performance, you must muster up as much love as you possibly can, and then you'll only feel like a dumb-dumb idiot half of the time in life." 

The "Spotlight" actress also reflected on her journey and thanked her parents, who she said heard her pleas as a child when she wanted to be on Ed McMahon's "Star Search" and enrolled her in theater camp. 

McAdams became emotional at one point, saying she wanted to "freeze time for a second" to honor her parents, who were in attendance. 

"You only get a few of these moments in life to thank you on this stage for everything," she began. "All of it is because of you and the love you gave us and the beautiful childhood you gave us, and for believing in me long before I could grasp how to believe in myself." 

She added, "I love you so much. Thank you."

In attendance at McAdams' Walk of Fame ceremony were Dylan O'Brien, who stars alongside McAdams in the upcoming film "Send Help." Sam Raimi, who is directing the film, was also in attendance and shared a few words about McAdams. 

The actress's "About Time" co-star Domhnall Gleeson also attended the event and honored McAdams, calling her "a phenomenal actor." 

"Every word you utter seems profoundly true and connected, and I have witnessed that up close 13 years ago on 'About Time,'" he said. "Rachel acted so convincingly at me, that for three full months, I believed I could travel through time."

He added, "No matter the role, I always believe the characters you create. I empathize with all of them. You make me understand all of them, and in this way, you make everything better."