Diane also made several TV movies during this period, but it was in 1983 that she finally began to make inroads again into being a top star. Acclaimed director Francis Ford Coppola noticed Diane's appeal and cast her in two 'youth' oriented films based on S.E. Hinton novels. Indeed Rumble Fish (1983) and The Outsiders (1983) have both become cult classics and gave her a loyal fan base. The industry was now taking notice and Diane Lane had secured lead roles in three big budget studio epics. She turned down the first, Splash (1984), (which was a surprise hit for Daryl Hannah). And then sadly, the other two were both poorly received bombs. Walter Hill's glossy 'rock 'n' roll fable' Streets of Fire (1984) was not the huge summer success that many had thought it would be and the hugely troubled Coppola epic The Cotton Club (1984) co-starring Richard Gere was also a high-profile flop. In many ways the dual failure of these films could have ended her career there and then - but thankfully it didn't. Diane (maybe or maybe not burned by the poor reception these films received) 'retired' for over 3 years and, at only 19 years old, claimed that she had forgotten what she had started acting for. Diane's performances in both films certainly wasn't to blame and, ironically, both have grown in popularity over the years, seeming to have found an audience.

The process of rebuilding her career was a slow and gradual one. First came the obscure and very sexy straight-to-video thriller Lady Beware (1987) followed by the acclaimed but little seen The Big Town (1987) with Matt Dillon and Tommy Lee Jones. In the former, Diane plays a very mysterious and sexy stripper and her memorable strip sequence is a highlight of the film. Despite her sexy on screen image, it wasn't until 1989's smash hit TV mini-series 'Lonesome Dove' (1989) (mini) that Diane Lane made another big impression on a sizable audience. Her performance in the hugely acclaimed western epic as a vulnerable 'whore with a heart' won her an Emmy nomination and much praise. Film producers were now interested in her again. Another acclaimed TV production Descending Angel (1990) (TV) was followed by smaller roles in major films like Richard Attenborough's Chaplin (1992), and Mike Binder's Indian Summer (1993) and larger parts in small independent films like My New Gun (1992), Vital Signs (1990) and Knight Moves (1992). Indeed, the latter two films co-starred her then-husband, Christopher Lambert, with whom she had a daughter named Eleanor.

Diane was now re-established in Hollywood and started to appear in higher profile co-starring roles in some big budget, major movies like Walter Hill's Wild Bill (1995), the Sylvester Stallone actioner Judge Dredd (1995), the Robin Williams's comedy, Jack (1996) and Murder at 1600 (1997) co-starring Wesley Snipes. However, all of these still did not quite make Diane a 'big name star' and, by 1997, she found herself (maybe by choice) back in smaller, personal projects.

Her next role as a frustrated 60s housewife in the highly acclaimed independent hit A Walk on the Moon (1999) deservedly won huge praise and, at last, gave her profile a huge lift. The cute but tear-jerking comedy My Dog Skip (2000) also proved to be a small-scale success. But it was the £330 million worldwide grossing blockbuster hit The Perfect Storm (2000) that finally made Diane Lane the household name star that she always should have been.

After the worldwide success of The Perfect Storm (2000), Diane Lane was more in demand than ever. She played Leelee Sobieski's sinister junkie guardian in the slick thriller The Glass House (2001/I), and co-starred with Keanu Reeves in the number one smash hit Hard Ball (2001). However, Diane's greatest career moment was still to come with her lead role in the enormous critical and commercial smash-hit Unfaithful (2002), in which superbly portrayed Richard Gere's cheating wife. Her performance won the hearts of critics and audiences alike, and there is much speculation about Academy Awards recognition. Media and critical attention quickly followed the films successful opening, and the Hollywood A-list beckons.