Elizabeth Berkley Recalls Working with ‘Hero’ Diane Keaton on “First Wives Club”, Reveals What Late Actress Taught Her (Exclusive)

Elizabeth Berkley’s role in The First Wives Club marked a memorable moment in her career as she portrayed the young, gold-digging actress Phoebe LaVelle.

Sharing the screen with an all-star cast including Goldie Hawn, Bette Midler and the late Diane Keaton, Berkley held her own amid powerhouse performances.

At the world premiere of Hulu’s new legal drama, All’s Fair, Berkley reflected on just how meaningful her experience in the 1996 film was and the great impact Keaton had on her as a young actress.

“It was a profound time,” Berkley tells PEOPLE exclusively. “To be embraced by these three most extraordinary women at the top of their game, women I had looked up to.” 

Fortunately, Berkley says Hawn, Midler, and Keaton not only met her expectations but exceeded them in every way.

“They say never get too close to your heroes,” Berkeley says. “Well, each of those women in their own right not only lived up to what I hoped they would be, they went beyond with their warmth, their generosity, their embrace of me and encouragement at a time where I really needed it in the industry.”

Berkley notes how meaningful it was – then and now – to see women coming together, especially at a time in the ’90s when stories of female support were rarely highlighted.

“And on that film – those women did,” she says. “So for me as a 20-something to see that, I realized what it could be and that I never wanted anything less than that.”

When it came to learning from Keaton, Berkeley says just watching her in action, on set, was a “gift” in itself.

She says there wasn’t one “specific thing” Keaton showed her, but rather just a way of being, noting that the Godfather actress taught her “what true leadership looks like.”

“These women are extraordinary. They’re all in their own right, a force of nature,” she tells PEOPLE. “And so, to get to collaborate with that kind of power, the generosity on set was really beautiful.”

The Showgirls actress also shared that she had admired Keaton for years before they ever worked together, calling her a “hero” and expressing deep sadness over the 79-year-old’s sudden death on Oct. 11, 2025.

“I’m very, very deeply sad about her passing,” she emphasizes. “But what a legacy, not only as an artist but as a woman, a creative.”

“Anyone who knew her knew what a huge heart she had,” Berkeley adds. “And just anyone was lucky to be in her orbit. Just a loving, loving, special woman.”

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On Oct. 16, 2025, PEOPLE confirmed that the Oscar winner died of bacterial pneumonia. She had been sick for several days before her death and had been under a doctor’s care since Sept. 24, with her last visit on Oct. 9.

No other conditions were listed, and the Annie Hall actress was cremated on Oct. 14.

Keaton, who never married, is survived by her two adopted children – daughter Dexter, welcomed in 1996, and son Duke, in 2001.