Jane Fonda Refuses to Say 'Jesus Christ,' Take Lord's Name in Vain on 'Grace and Frankie' Series
Actress Jane Fonda has reportedly refused to say "Jesus Christ" in the context of taking the Lord's name in vain on the "Grace and Frankie" show on which she stars, because of her Christian faith.
Series co-creator Marta Kauffman said at the Paley Center for Media's "Going Beyond the Number" event in New York on Tuesday that Fonda, who stars as retired cosmetics mogul Grace Henson on the Netflix show, has pushed back against using such language on the series so the writers have to rework her dialogue.
"We've had little things, like Jane didn't feel comfortable saying — honestly, it was 'Jesus Christ,'" she said at the event, according to The Hollywood Reporter. "Jane didn't feel comfortable saying, 'Jesus Christ.'"
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Kauffman insisted that she was happy to comply with her request, as she does with the requests of the show's other stars, namely Lily Tomlin, Martin Sheen and Sam Waterston.
"These four actors are the most professional, glorious people I've ever worked with. I love them. So when they have an issue, it's not that they're being divas," Kauffman said.
"It's not that they're being self-important. They have a real issue."
The 80-year-old actress, who is a two-time Academy Award-winner, a former fashion model and political activist, has talked about her Christian faith on her website, revealing that she grew up as an atheist before finding God, though she does not follow organized religion.
"Over time, and, I feel, because I stepped outside of established religion, I was able to rekindle the spiritual experience that I'd been seeking. Some will say that because of all this I am not a true Christian. So be it. I feel like a Christian, I believe in the teachings of Jesus and try to practice them in my life. I have found Christians all over this country who feel as I do. They may not have been 'saved' yet they hum with divine spirit," she wrote in a post in 2009.
"My faith is a work in progress (as am I) but I will plant my flag on the belief that God lives within each of us as Spirit (or soul). I like what Reverend Forrest Church says: 'God is not God's name. God is our name for that which is greater than all and yet present in all.' I believe that Christ was the personal incarnation of the divine wisdom in everything, including every form of spiritual expression," she added.
Fonda was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2010, but underwent lumpectomy and has since recovered. In 2013, she told Oprah Winfrey that she is "not afraid" of dying despite the scare.
"It was a good test, because I always said I'm not afraid of dying," Fonda said of her diagnosis back then. "And I wasn't. I mean, I felt, God, I've just joined a family of millions of women who have gone through this. And how interesting. What a journey this is going to be."
