Hollywood is mourning the loss of one of its greatest legends, Robert Redford, who passed away at 89 in his Utah home.
But for of actress, the grief cuts even deeper.
Robert Redford wasn’t just a movie star — he was the definition of one. With his golden hair, piercing blue eyes, and effortless charm, he turned heads everywhere he went. People didn’t just admire him, they fell in love with him.
From the moment he stepped into Hollywood, it was clear he had something special. Secretaries reportedly rushed out of their offices just to catch a glimpse of him walking by. Fans adored him, and directors knew instantly he had the kind of screen presence that couldn’t be taught.
Another person who fell for the charismatic actor was Jane Fonda.
The Grace and Frankie star broke down as she shared her heartbreak over the man who had captured her heart on screen — and in many ways, off screen too.
Fell madly in love with him
“It hit me hard this morning when I read that Bob was gone. I can’t stop crying. He meant a lot to me and was a beautiful person in every way. He stood for an America we have to keep fighting for,” Fonda said in a statement through her rep.
Their cinematic partnership stretched over five decades — from Tall Story and Barefoot in the Park to Our Souls at Night, their final film together.
And with each role, their bond only seemed to grow stronger.
On Instagram, Fonda shared a photo from the set of Our Souls at Night alongside Redford and actor Iain Armitage, reflecting on years of friendship, laughter, and unforgettable memories.
“I am very sad today. Cried all morning. But luckily, I can think back on so many joyful, laughter-filled moments when his practical jokes would crack me up. I feel so lucky to have made one of his first big movies with him, Barefoot in the Park (I fell madly in love with him on that one) and his last (the aforementioned Souls at Night),” she wrote.
Her words turned painfully honest when she admitted one regret:
“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. When people are our age, late 80s, don’t wait.”
And in a final message to Redford, she wrote: “Thank you, dearest Bob, for all the pleasure you brought over the years. RIP.”
This wasn’t the first time Fonda had openly admitted how much Redford meant to her. Looking back on a publicity photo from Barefoot in the Park, she once gushed, “He is so handsome and just such a wonderful human being. Every movie I made with him, I developed a crush on him.”
In a 2017 interview with The Guardian, she didn’t hold back either: “And I was always in love with Robert Redford – I made three films with him and nothing happened because I was married and he was married.”
And in a rare joint interview, she remembered the first time she ever laid eyes on him. As Redford walked down the corridor of an administration building, secretaries rushed out of their offices just to watch him pass. Fonda instantly knew he was destined for stardom: “There was nobody more gorgeous than him.”
For his part, Redford never hid his admiration for her either. While promoting Our Souls at Night, he described Fonda as “a force,” adding: “It is an admirable quality and I think, very few people have it like Jane does.”
And Fonda admitted the film gave her one more chance to fall in love with him — on screen, at least. Redford joked that he’d love to work with her again, but time wasn’t on their side.
From Barefoot in the Park in 1967 to their final embrace at the Venice Film Festival premiere of Our Souls at Night in 2017, their bond was undeniable — the kind of Hollywood magic that felt real because, for them, it was.
Talking about their Netflix film Our Souls at Night, Fonda once joked, “There is eventually a love scene. I’m happy with the love scene. I’m unhappy because it was so short!”
Reflecting on their long history together, she laughed, “I’ve been in bed with him a lot,” and later confessed, “I live for sex scenes with [Redford].”
”The only problem with working with Bob is I kind of look into his eyes and I kind of fall into his eyes and forget my dialogue,” Fonda told Ellen DeGeneres in 2017.
”I realize that I’ve grown up because in the three previous movies, I was always in love with him. I fell in love with him every time.”
As fans, we’ve been lucky to watch their story unfold, both on and off screen.
And thanks to Jane’s raw honesty, we now know just how much Bob meant to her — and to the world.