Watch Jane Fonda Get Vulnerable About Her Own Insecurities in This 1980 Interview
This isn't the Jane Fonda we're used to seeing!
The 1980 film 9 to 5 stars Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin and Dolly Parton as a trio of office workers navigating sexism and politics while on the job. Fonda later admitted to Vanity Fair that when she first approached Tomlin and Parton about their respective roles neither woman was interested, but eventually, they were convinced and comedic gold was born.
Despite often displaying a strong feeling of confidence in public appearances and interviews, Fonda is human like the rest of us and experiences her own periods of self-doubt. In this 1980 interview (which was recorded while Fonda was on the promotional tour for 9 to 5) with Bobbie Wygant, she opens up about the insecurities she faces and struggles with, and what she does to overcome those feelings of inadequacy.
After Wygant asks, "Are you ever insecure, Jane? Do you ever have any insecure feelings?" Fonda chuckles and glances to the side before approaching the question sincerely. She answers, "A lot, a whole lot, sure."
Fonda then continues, "As a professional woman, practically every time I start a film, as my husband will testify to, I go through a period of weeks where I think I can't do it, I should be fired, someone else can do it better. I just think I'm no good."
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She adds that this experience of imposter syndrome usually goes away quickly. Fonda says, "Once we start the film, you get too absorbed to be thinking that way, but I always feel like it's my first film and I don't know what I'm doing. I always question my judgment about whether it's the right thing to do."
Luckily, Fonda also said at the time that when she's not plagued by these feelings of insecurity, it's because of the people she loves the most. She says, "If I'm not so frightened or insecure, it's because I'm not alone. I have a family that's very supportive and very strong."
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At the time, Fonda was married to former Sen. Tom Hayden, who she cites in the interview as being part of her support system. Fonda also credits her children, Vanessa Vadim, Troy Garity and Mary Luana Williams with being her strength, and includes her father Henry Fonda.
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