You’ve seen her take on a misogynistic boss, uncover a potential nuclear disaster, compete in a dance marathon, and traverse outer space. For her next act, Jane Fonda was named the 60th recipient of the SAG Life Achievement Award, SAG-AFTRA’s highest tribute. Fonda was presented with the honor by Julia Louis-Dreyfus at the 31st Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards. The event streamed live on Netflix on Sunday, Feb. 23 at 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT.
Nominated and voted on by members of the SAG-AFTRA National Honors and Tributes Committee, the award recognizes an individual who has improved the image of the acting profession and carries with them a humanitarian spirit. If ever there were an actor who represents these ideals, it would be Fonda, whose career and commitment to activism began in the ’60s. Her acceptance speech for the award brought some of those values to the forefront.
“What we, actors, create is empathy,” Fonda said during the live broadcast. “Our job is to understand another human being so profoundly that we can touch their souls. And make no mistake, empathy is not weak or woke. By the way, woke just means you give a damn about other people.”
Watch the speech in full here:
“I am deeply honored and humbled to be this year's recipient of the SAG Life Achievement Award,” Fonda told Netflix ahead of the ceremony. “I have been working in this industry for almost the entirety of my life and there’s no honor like the one bestowed on you by your peers. SAG-AFTRA works tirelessly to protect the working actor and to ensure that union members are being treated equitably in all areas, and I am proud to be a member as we continue to work to protect generations of performers to come.”
Fonda made her film debut in the 1960 movie Tall Story, but it was her 1971 performance as Bree Daniels in Klute that received critical acclaim and solidified her status as a leading actor. She earned her first of two Academy Awards for Best Actress for the role, the second of which she received while starring in Coming Home. Fonda’s numerous honors include two Oscars, two BAFTA Awards, an Emmy, seven Golden Globes, the 2015 AFI Life Achievement Award, the Cecil B. DeMille Award, Elle’s Women in Hollywood Icon award, as well as the Women in Film Jane Fonda Humanitarian Award, which was named after Fonda in recognition of her lifelong activism and philanthropic commitments. She also accepted the Harry Belafonte Voices for Social Justice Award in 2023, and the TIME Earth Award in April 2024.
Fonda is known for her roles in iconic films such as 9 to 5, They Shoot Horses, Don’t They?, The China Syndrome, Barbarella, and On Golden Pond. She has portrayed characters from all walks of life in genres from comedies to dramas to thrillers to heartfelt animated films. Her work in television has been equally impactful. Fonda earned an Emmy in 1984 for her role in The Dollmaker, and two more nominations in the 2010s for her recurring role in the HBO series The Newsroom. Her television success continued in 2015 with Grace and Frankie, Netflix’s longest running series, in which she co-stars alongside her longtime friend and collaborator Lily Tomlin.
Jane Fonda as Grace Hanson in Season 7 of Grace and Frankie
Throughout her nearly 65-year career, Fonda has proven she is a force to be reckoned with both on- and off-screen. The actor has consistently used her platform to advocate for social justice, starting with the antiwar movement in the early ’60s. Since then, her principled dedication to humanitarian rights and the environment has never wavered. Fonda has powerfully advocated for gender equality, Indigenous sovereignty, civil rights, and environmental justice, and she is the co-founder of several advocacy organizations, including the Hollywood Women’s Political Committee (HWPC), the Women’s Media Center, and the Jane Fonda Climate PAC.
SAG-AFTRA president Fran Drescher called Fonda “a trailblazer and an extraordinary talent; a dynamic force who has shaped the landscape of entertainment, advocacy, and culture with unwavering passion.” Highlighting Fonda’s artistic talents and legacy of activism, Drescher said, “Her fearless honesty has been an inspiration to me and many others in our industry.”
As this year’s SAG Life Achievement Award recipient, Fonda joins the ranks of some of the most renowned performers of the last 62 years. Previous winners include last year’s honoree Barbra Streisand, Alan Alda, Robert De Niro, and Carol Burnett, as well as Fonda’s co-stars in the 2023 film 80 For Brady: Tomlin, Sally Field, and Rita Moreno.
Read more about the 31st Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards here.
