But Bridget did not simply rely on that legacy.
She carved out a screen identity of her own.
Her credits included Scandal in 1989, The Godfather Part III in 1990, Singles and Single White Female in 1992, Point of No Return and Little Buddha in 1993, and Quentin Tarantino’s Jackie Brown in 1997.
She followed those with films including A Simple Plan in 1998, Lake Placid in 1999 and Monkeybone in 2001.
For many fans, however, a few performances became especially important in defining what Fonda could do.
In Single White Female, she played a woman whose decision to take in a roommate turns increasingly terrifying.
The film became one of the defining psychological thrillers of the early 1990s and helped cement Fonda’s position as a major leading actress.
Then came Jackie Brown.
Tarantino cast Fonda as Melanie, a laid-back beach-loving woman whose relaxed exterior hides something sharper underneath.
