Robert Redford, who died today at the age of 89, created a body of work that often intersected his passion for activism with storytelling and filmmaking. Jane Fonda, who co-starred alongside Redford in several films including the 1967 comedy Barefoot in the Park, shared a moving tribute to the actor and celebrated how he championed American films made outside the Hollywood studio system.
Addressed to “Bob Redford,” Fonda shared a still from their last film together, 2017’s Our Souls at Night, and wrote, “Bob made a real difference in all good ways. He represented an America we must now fight to protect.” In a nod toward his founding of the Sundance Institute and film festival, which opened doors for emerging filmmakers seeking to tell often overlooked stories, Fonda said, “He revolutionized independent film making and made us swoon in so many movies.”
While Fonda added that she was “very sad today” and “cried all morning,” she luckily “can think back on so many joyful, laughter-filled moments when his practical jokes would crack me up.” Fonda said she also felt “so lucky to have made one of his first big movies with him” (Barefoot in the Park), adding that she fell “madly in love with him on that one,” and his “last” (Our Souls at Night).
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“I was wanting to go see him these last few months to make sure we were all right between us but I didn’t act on it soon enough. Lesson learned,” said Fonda, before giving a bit of sage advice: “When people are our age, late 80s, don’t wait.” Before ending her tribute, she wrote, “Thank you, dearest Bob, for all the pleasure you brought over the years.”
Fonda, who has also been an activist over the past five-plus decades, was among Redford’s colleagues who honored him following news of his death including Woody Harrelson, Barbra Streisand, and Scarlett Johansson.
