Bridget Fonda Biography

Bridget is the granddaughter of the legend that was Henry Fonda and niece of the living legend, Jane Fonda. She got her first taste of acting in a high-school production of ‘Harvey’ while at the Westlake School for Girls in Los Angeles. Although she suffered severe stage fright during her early years, she went on to attend the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University, where she majored in theater, as well as the Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute.

Fonda made her film debut with a non-speaking role in the 1982 comedy ‘Partners’. Six years later, she appeared in ‘You Can't Hurry Love’ (this time with lines) and opposite Phoebe Cates in the beach flick ‘Shag’. She followed these parts with two leading roles: as real-life British call girl Mandy Rice-Davies in ‘Scandal’ and the star of the favourably reviewed ‘Strapless’.

By the early 1990s, Fonda had earned a reputation as a serious actress and began to work steadily in features, starting with a small but memorable role as a reporter in ‘The Godfather Part III’ in 1990. From there, she starred in ‘Single White Female’ and Cameron Crowe's ‘Singles’ (both 1992), ‘Bodies, Rest and Motion’ (1993), ‘Point of No Return’ (1993) and ‘It Could Happen to You’ (1994).

‘Point of No Return’, released as ‘The Assassin’ in the UK, may have been a hollow blockbuster adaptation of the tour de force that was Nikita Having demonstrated her ability to play the comedic heroine who is luckless in love, she took on a different type of role as a perpetually stoned, ill-fated beach bunny in ‘Jackie Brown’ (1997). The following year, she portrayed another atypical character in ‘A Simple Plan’, earning raves as Bill Paxton's pregnant, increasingly crazed wife.

Fonda has dated screenwriter Lee Drysdale, actor Eric Stoltz, whom she met on the set of ‘Singles’ and singer Dwight Yoakam.

She finished her last film in 2002 and the following year she married the composer Danny Elfman.