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Lily Tomlin and Jane Fonda speak on stage during Era Coalition Forward Women's Equality Trailblazer Awards and premiere of "Still Working 9 to 5" at Lily Tomlin/Jane Wagner Cultural Arts Center on May 29, 2024 in Los Angeles, California.© Getty Images

Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin reunite for special '9 to 5' honor — see how they've changed in the years since

The Grace and Frankie stars have been friends for over four decades

Ahad Sanwari
Ahad Sanwari - New York
Senior WriterNew York
May 30, 2024
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Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin reunited once again on Wednesday, May 29, for the Era Coalition Forward Women's Equality Trailblazer Awards and premiere of Still Working 9 to 5 at the Lily Tomlin/Jane Wagner Cultural Arts Center.

Jane, 86, and Lily, 84, spoke fondly about working on the era-defining 1980 workplace comedy with Dolly Parton, which is set to be rebooted by Jennifer Aniston and writer Diablo Cody.

In celebration of the movie's 44 years of influence and the premiere of the 2022 documentary shining a light on the evolution of workplace culture for women, take a look at Jane and Lily's friendship over the years…

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American actresses Lily Tomlin, Jane Fonda and Dolly Parton on the set of Nine to Five, written and directed by Colin Higgins.© Getty Images

The sets of 9 to 5

Taking it back to the very beginning, when the duo starred in the hit feature film alongside Dolly, which was a box office hit and is now considered a cult classic and one of AFI's 100 Funniest Movies.

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Dolly Parton, Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin at the film premiere of "9 to 5," New York, December 5th 1980.© Getty Images

1980 — 9 to 5 premiere

The three leading ladies of the film appeared at the premiere of the film in New York in December 1980, kicking off a friendship that would last for decades, and an illustrious career on the screen for country star Dolly as well.

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Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin during Valley Community Clinic Honors Lily Tomlin at Laughter is the Best Medicine Gala at Sheraton Universal Hotel in Universal City, California, United States.© Getty Images

2004 — Staying Close

Over the years, Jane and Lily remained close, despite not working on projects together often. They often, in fact, made appearances to celebrate each other at special events. Here, they're pictured at the Valley Community Clinic's ceremony honoring Lily Tomlin at Laughter is the Best Medicine Gala.

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Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin and Dolly Parton during "9 to 5" 25th Anniversary Special Edition DVD Launch Party - March 30, 2006 at The Annex (Hollywood and Highland) in Hollywood, California, United States. © Getty Images

2006 — 9 to 5 at 25

In 2006, the close friends reunited with Dolly reunited for a party celebrating the 25th anniversary of their film, with the release of a special anniversary DVD. However, for the two Hollywood besties, their second coming was just around the corner…

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Actresses Lily Tomlin (L) and Jane Fonda arrive at the premiere of Netflix's "Grace and Frankie" at the Regal Cinemas L.A. Live on April 29, 2015 in Los Angeles, California.© Getty Images

2015 — Grace and Frankie

35 years after making the Colin Higgins comedy, the duo came back for another project, the Netflix series Grace and Frankie, a dramedy about two women in their 70s who form a bond when their husbands come out as gay and marry each other. The series ran for seven seasons and was a huge hit, nabbing multiple Emmy and Golden Globe nominations as well (and featuring a cameo from Dolly herself in the finale).

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Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin 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 Images

2023 — 80 For Brady

Last year, the actresses starred in two movies together, the first being 80 For Brady alongside Sally Field and Rita Moreno, and the other being Moving On, their second and third films together, establishing themselves as comedic stars once again.

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Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin attend Era Coalition Forward Women's Equality Trailblazer Awards and premiere of "Still Working 9 to 5" at Lily Tomlin/Jane Wagner Cultural Arts Center on May 29, 2024 in Los Angeles, California.© Getty Images

2024 — The present day

Here, Jane and Lily are seen at the premiere of Still Working 9 to 5, even getting the opportunity to speak about the newly announced reboot. "Good luck to them," Jane told Entertainment Tonight. "It's fun. I wish them a lot of luck. They're very talented." Lily added: "I'm pleased to know that someone else is working on it and may they have successful fruition."

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