Annie Hall - Cast

Cast

Several personal references in the film have invited speculation that it is autobiographical for the director. Both Alvy and Allen were comedians. His birthday appears on the blackboard in a school scene, certain features of his childhood are found in Alvy Singer's, Allen went to New York University and so did Alvy. Diane Keaton's real surname is "Hall" and "Annie" was her nickname, and she and Allen were once romantically involved. There is an ambiguous allusion to Keaton's feature roles in the first two films of The Godfather trilogy. However, Allen is quick to dispel these suggestions. "The stuff that people insist is autobiographical is almost invariably not," Allen said. "It's so exaggerated that it's virtually meaningless to the people upon whom these little nuances are based. People got it into their heads that Annie Hall was autobiographical, and I couldn't convince them it wasn't". Contrary to various interviewers and commentators, he says, Alvy is not the character that is closest to himself; he identified more with the mother (Eve, played by Geraldine Page) in his next film, Interiors. Despite this, Keaton has stated that the relationship between Alvy and Annie was partly based on her relationship with the director.

The role of Annie Hall was written specifically for Keaton, who had worked with Allen on Play it Again, Sam, Sleeper and Love and Death. She considered the character an "affable version" of herself—both were "semi-articulate, dreamed of being a singer and suffered from insecurity"—and was surprised to win an Oscar for her performance.

Federico Fellini was Allen's first choice to appear in the cinema lobby scene because his films were under discussion, but Allen chose cultural academic Marshall McLuhan after both Fellini and Luis Buñuel declined the cameo.

Some cast members, Baxter claims, were aggrieved at Allen's treatment of them. The director "acted coldly" towards McLuhan, who had to return from Canada for reshooting, and Mordecai Lawner, who played Alvy's father, claimed that Allen never spoke to him. However, during the production, Allen began a two-year relationship with Stacey Nelkin, who appears in a single scene.

• Woody Allen as Alvy Singer
• Diane Keaton as Annie Hall
• Tony Roberts as Rob
• Carol Kane as Allison Portchnik
• Paul Simon as Tony Lacey
• Shelley Duvall as Pam
• Janet Margolin as Robin
• Colleen Dewhurst as Mrs. Hall
• Christopher Walken as Duane Hall
• Jeff Goldblum as LA party guy on phone
• Sigourney Weaver as Alvy's date outside theater
• Beverly D'Angelo as Actress in Rob's TV Show
• Tracey Walter as Actor in Rob's TV Show
• Shelley Hack as Street Stranger (as Shelly Hack)
• John Glover as Annie's actor ex-boyfriend
• Truman Capote (uncredited) as Winner of the Truman Capote Lookalike Contest
• Marshall McLuhan as Himself (Cameo)
• Laurie Bird as Tony Lacey's girlfriend
• Mark Lenard as Navy Officer
• Dick Cavett as Himself