Nancy Green-Keyes Dies: ‘The Notebook’, ‘Rush Hour’ Casting Director Was 68

Nancy Green-Keyes, a casting director, agent and film producer whose many credits include The Notebook and Rush Hour, died January 17 at UCLA Hospital in Santa Monica of acute respiratory failure following a brief illness. She was 68.

Her death was announced by her family.

A Rhode Island native, Green-Keyes studied art at Brandeis University before moving to Los Angeles, where she would eventually land a job as assistant to talent agent and manager Susan Smith.

Green-Keyes later became an agent at the Peter Meyer Agency and later still at Ambrosio/Mortimer, where she helped develop the careers of John Hawkes, Steve Buscemi, Angela Bassett, Samuel Jackson, M.C. Gainey and Troy Evans, among others.

Moving from agenting to casting, Green-Keyes and her partner Matt Barry were responsible for casting dozens of films including Rush Hour (1998), The Family Man (2000), John Q (2002), Freddy vs. Jason (2003), The Notebook (2004), Alpha Dog (2006) and My Sister’s Keeper (2009).

Green-Keyes and Barry were credited as co-producers on Alpha Dog, which starred Bruce Willis and Justin Timberlake, and Green-Keyes was a producer on Richie Adams’ 2014 feature Of Minds and Music with Joaquim de Almeida, Aunjanue Ellis, Bill Cobbs and Ruth Negga.

Green-Keyes is survived by daughter Tiffany Keyes, and brothers Michael and Andrew Green. The family asks that any donations be made in her name to the Wallis Annenberg PetSpace.