Jane Fonda on Jean-Luc Godard: ‘A Great Filmmaker. But as a Man? I’m Sorry, No.’
Jane Fonda was in Cannes this week to present the Palme d’Or to Justine Triet for her acclaimed film “Anatomy of a Fall.” And she used her time on the Croisette to share her unfiltered thoughts on some of the industry’s most influential figures. Appearing at the festival on Friday, Fonda made no attempts to hide her feelings about the likes of Jean-Luc Godard and Robert Redford (via Deadline).
“He was a great filmmaker,” Fonda said of Godard. “I take my hat off. A great filmmaker. But as a man? I’m sorry. No, no.”
The Oscar winner did not elaborate on her issues with the “Breathless” director, but she got more specific when it came to her thoughts on Redford. Fonda recalled working with Redford on four films beginning with 1967’s “Barefoot in the Park.” She said that she “was in love” with the famously handsome actor when she first met him, but came to realize that he “just has an issue with women.” By the time they worked together on the 2017 film “Our Souls at Night,” Fonda said she had learned how to deal with him.
“He’s always in a bad mood, and I always thought it was my fault,” she said of working with Redford. “The last movie I made with him was six years ago. What was I, about 80 years old or something like that. And I finally knew I had grown up. When he would come on the set three hours late in a bad mood, I knew it wasn’t my fault.”
Fonda’s comments about Godard are not the first time the actress has aired her grievances with dead French filmmakers. She recently recalled being inappropriately propositioned by René Clément during the production of the 1964 film “Joy House.” Fonda claims that the director attempted to sleep with her under the guise of acting preparation, but she was able to decline by pretending not to speak French.
“Well, he wanted to go to bed with me because he said the character had to have an orgasm in the movie and he needed to see what my orgasms were like,” she said. “He said it in French and I pretended I didn’t understand.”