Over the years, there have been a number of instances, with many of them typically being arrested before ultimately getting released. One could argue, however, that it's not often that a star is willing to talk about their experience with the law as candidly as Jane Fonda. That may be because her arrests have historically been the results of civil disobedience. Fonda's exploits have seemingly given her some perspective, as indicated by her comments on one of her latest arrests. And, while discussing it, she revealed the famous movie she "pulled," which earned her recognition while behind bars.
The Grace and Frankie star has always spoken her mind, sometimes unfiltered, like that time she talked about sitting on Ryan Gosling’s face. But the 9 to 5 actress recently spoke seriously, opening up about her multiple arrests on Ted Danson and Woody Harrelson’s podcast, Where Everybody Knows Your Name. Ironically, during the specific jail visit in question, the 86-year-old actress said her celebrity status got her nowhere with the other inmates. That is, until she mentioned a hit movie from the 2000s that she starred in:
I was the only white person there. And then, in the morning, I ended up being put some place else with a lot of other prisoners, Black women, and it was, you know, it was really interesting. They [couldn’t] have cared less who I was. They had far more important things to think about. None of them had seen any of my movies — Jennifer Lopez. Yeah, they had seen Monster-in-Law. I pulled that card and they were mildly impressed, but not really. They went right back and talked about what they were dealing with, which was survival issues. It was an eye-opener, I'll tell you.
Jane Fonda has been a Hollywood staple for over half a century, teaming up with big names such as Dolly Parton, Lily Tomlin and Sally Field for films. I’m surprised 9 to 5 or even just dropping Parton's name didn't get her anywhere, that is if she even mentioned the workplace comedy or her co-star at all. Perhaps it was Monster-In-Law for the win, because JLo is a bit more current. After all, the multi-hyphenate does have entries on the 2024 movie release as well as a very high-profile relationship with Ben Affleck. Also, while Lopez and Fonda's 2005 flick may not be the best rom-coms of all time, it has garnered a massive following and is a comfort movie for some people.
In the behind-the-scenes documentary for JLo’s visual album, the Atlas star revealed she is still close to Jane Fonda all these years after filming their movie. Fonda, for her part, also still seems to view the songstress as a surrogate daughter of sorts. That assumption is based on her concern for Lopez and her hubby when the Internet got ahold of the "Sad Affleck" meme. The Book Club actress even made an appearance in Lopez’s This is Me…Now: A Love Story, which is available to watch with an Amazon Prime Video subscription.
But even name-dropping the "Get Right" performer didn’t get the Oscar winner very far with the people she shared a cell with. However, her time in prison was clearly impacted by her high profile status in other ways. Amid her recent interview, the actress divulged that a guard was stationed at her cell door at all times, with the insinuation being that it was for her protection. She shared even more detailed thoughts about her experience in the clip below:
The 80 for Brady actress has seemingly always been very aware of her white privilege and celebrity status, especially given she was one of Hollywood’s OG nepo babies. But she always used that awareness and platform in the form of activism ever since the 1970s, speaking out against the Vietnam War, standing with Black Lives Matter and protesting with other climate activists. Coincidentally, podcast co-host Ted Danson was even arrested with her in 2019 during a climate protest, per USA Today.
Having been arrested upwards of 5 times, it seems clear that Jane Fonda has no plans to stop her activism in the name of the law anytime soon and, surely, her fans will continue to support her efforts. It's hard to say whether anyone might recognize her if she does end up behind bars again. However, if she does, she can always pull the JLo card again or name another one of her famous movie credits.
Anyone who wants to check out Monster-in-Law for themselves can buy or rent it on Prime Video.
