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Jane Fonda speaks out on retirement plans months after 85th birthday

The actress is the upcoming star of Book Club: The Next Chapter, and released 80 for Brady this year as well

Jane FondaJane Fonda attends Homeboy Industries' 2023 Lo Maximo Awards and Fundraising Gala at JW Marriott Los Angeles L.A. LIVE on April 29, 2023 in Los Angeles, California
Beatriz Colon
Beatriz Colon - New York
Online News WriterNew York
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Jane Fonda, after a career in Hollywood spanning sixty years – she was born into it after all – multiple Academy Award wins, three husbands, political controversies and wins, plus two battles with cancer, could retire, but she isn't even thinking about it.

The actress and activist, 85, recently capped off her time on the hit Netflix series Grace & Frankie alongside her longtime collaborator Lily Tomlin, but it is nowhere near the last time fans will see her on the screen.

She has had not one but two movies in theaters within the first third of 2023 alone, and she maintains she'll keep up with her work for as long as she can.

WATCH: Jane Fonda stars in the sequel for Book Club

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Speaking with Entertainment Tonight alongside co-stars Mary Steenburgen and Candice Bergen ahead of their Book Club sequel, Book Club: The Next Chapter, the three opened up about their future in the industry, and a potential retirement.

"The great thing about acting is that you're invited to come and become another person," said Fonda after dismissing any retirement talk, adding: "You have to enter that other person with great empathy."

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The 9 to 5 actress further said: "It's just such a challenge to find who is this person that I'm supposed to be and what was she like as a child. I find great joy with that kind of character exploration."

Rita Moreno, Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin and Sally Field attend the Los Angeles Premiere Screening of Paramount Pictures' "80 For Brady" at Regency Village Theatre on January 31, 2023 in Los Angeles, California© Getty
Fonda premiered 80 for Brady in January of 2023 alongside fellow legends Sally Field, Rita Moreno, and her 9 to 5 co-star

After so many decades in the industry, she also noted how much it has changed, and, notorious for her activism, she of course stood in solidarity with the ongoing WGA strike in Hollywood and beyond.

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"Everything has changed in terms of making money in this town," she said, before maintaining: "We all do understand why they strike and we support them and wish them well. This is a very hard time for the below-the-line workers in Hollywood."

Jane Fonda in 1965's Cat Ballou© Getty
The actress' breakthrough role was in 1965's Cat Ballou

The three women's new film, which also stars fellow veteran actress Diane Keaton, hits theaters on May 12.

The movie sees the four take their book club abroad as they jet off for a girls trip to Venice, Italy, which turns into a total adventure for the best friends. It also stars Andy Garcia, Don Johnson, and Craig T. Nelson.

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