Single White Female

Background:

"You can't count on fame or popularity." Bridget Fonda

The granddaughter of actor Henry Fonda, daughter of actor Peter Fonda and niece of actress and fitness guru Jane Fonda, actress Bridget Fonda received broad prominence while starring as Allison 'Allie' Jones, an oblivious victim of another's neurosis, in Barbet Schroeder's taut psychological thriller Single White Female (1992, opposite Jennifer Jason Leigh). The actress, who gained early recognition in the 1989 films Shag, Scandal and Strapless, continued to amazed filmgoers with her films Singles (1992), Point of No Return (1993), Bodies, Rest & Motion (1993), Little Buddha (1993), City Hall (1996), A Simple Plan (1998), Lake Placid (1999), Monkeybone (2001) and Kiss of the Dragon (2001).

5' 6" tall Bridget Fonda was named one of Empire magazine’s “100 Sexiest Stars in Film History” in 1995. Her personal life has been linked to singer and actor Dwight Yoakam (born on October 23, 1956; dated in 1999-2001), actor Eric Stoltz (born on September 30, 1961; together in 1989-1998) and screenwriter and director Lee Drysdale (together in together 1986-1989). She is currently the wife of musician Danny Elfman.


Nasty Fonda

Childhood and Family:

"I can be pretty nasty. Not 'mean' nasty, but nasty by your parents' standards. But not by my parents' standards, because my parents were nasty for their day.” Bridget Fonda

In a family well-rehearsed in the movie scene, Bridget Jane Fonda, named after a step-aunt who committed suicide (Bridget Hayward), was born on January 27, 1964, in Los Angeles, California. Her father is actor Peter Fonda (born on February 23, 1939; married on October 8, 1961; divorced on April 16, 1974) and her mother is artist Susan Brewer. Her grandfather is Hollywood heavy hitter Henry Fonda (born on May 16, 1905; died on August 12, 1982) and her aunt is actress and fitness expert Jane Fonda (born on December 21, 1937). Goddaughter of Larry Hagman, Bridget has a grandmother, Frances Brokaw Fonda, who committed suicide on October 14, 1950. After her parents remarried, Bridget had a stepmother, Portia Rebecca Crockett, and a stepfather who works as an agent and producer. She also has one younger brother, Justin Fonda (born in 1969), and one half-brother named Thomas (mother: Portia Rebecca Crockett). Her cousins are actor Troy Garrity (son of Jane Fonda and Tom Hayden) and director and cinematographer Vanessa Vadim.

Following her parents divorce, mother Susan Brewer raised Bridget and her brother in Coldwater Canyon, a suburb of Los Angeles. Bridget attended the Westlake School for Girls, in Los Angeles, California, and studied Theater at the Tisch School of the Arts at the New York University in New York.

In December of 2003 (some sources mentioned November 30, 2003), Bridget Fonda exchanged wedding vows with composer and former member of "Oingo-Boingo," Danny Elfman (born on May 29, 1953), at Los Angeles' First Congressional Church. The couple welcomed their first son, Oliver Henry Milton Elfman, in mid-January of 2005.


Point of No Return

Career:

"I'm afraid of making a mistake. I'm not totally neurotic, but I'm pretty neurotic about it. I'm as close to totally neurotic as you can get without being totally neurotic." Bridget Fonda

Building her first interest in acting while performing in a high-school production of the comedy "Harvey," 18-year-old Bridget Fonda honed in on her acting talent at the Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute while studying at the New York University. Though she initially was afraid to perform on stage, Bridget managed to act in plays, including starring in a graduate student film called PPT and the workshop stage productions "Confession" and "Pastels."

Bridget Fonda originally had her first on-set experience with an unaccredited appearance as a child in a commune in father Peter Fonda and actor-director Dennis Hopper's Easy Rider (1969). In 1982, she appeared in James Burrows' comedy Partners (starring Ryan O'Neal) and in Franc Roddam's segment ("Tristan und Isolde") of the musical comedy Aria (filmed in 1987; released in USA in 1998). Bridget then made her first USA released movie debut in writer-director Richard Martini's comedy You Can't Hurry Love (1988), in which she costarred with David Packer and Scott McGinnis.

After lending her voice to the animated Gandahar (1988) and costarring as Jenny Robertson's twin sister in the PBS special Jacob Have I Loved (1989, based on the Newbury Award-winning book by Katherine Paterson), Bridget teamed with Phoebe Cates, Annabeth Gish and Page Hannah playing four best friends in Zelda Barron's comedy Shag (1989), in which Bridget did an unforgettable sexy dance with a Confederate flag. She followed it up with the Golden Globe nominated role of British showgirl Mandy Rice-Davies in Michael Caton-Jones' political drama Scandal (1989, with John Hurt and Ian McKellen). That same year, Bridget costarred with Blair Brown, playing her freewheeling younger sister, in writer-director David Hare's Strapless (1989, also with Bruno Ganz).

In the early 1990s, Bridget played aspiring author Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin/Shelly in Roger Corman's adaptation of the fascinating novel by Brian Aldiss, Frankenstein Unbound (with John Hurt and Raul Julia) and had a bit part as Andy Garcia’s photojournalist girlfriend in Francis Ford Coppola's The Godfather: Part III (starring Al Pacino). Bridget then costarred with Michael O'Keefe in Gary Winick's Out of the Rain and with Michael J. Fox and Julie Warner in Michael Caton-Jones' comedy film adopted from Neil B. Shulman's book, Doc Hollywood (both in 1991). She also starred as a Japanese tycoon's lovely American wife in Hiroaki Yoshida's Iron Maze (opposite Jeff Fahey) and costarred as D.B. Sweeney's girlfriend in writer-director Lee Drysdale's Leather Jackets (1992).

Allison 'Allie' Jones, Jennifer Jason Leigh's roommate, and an oblivious victim of another's neurosis, was probably Bridget Fonda’s most memorable role to date. She played the role in Barbet Schroeder's taut psychological thriller based on John Lutz's novel, Single White Female (1992), and garnered positive reviews. A string of significant roles followed. As Janet, who has a crush on Matt Dillon's character in writer-director Cameron Crowe's Singles (1992), a beautiful cop murderer turned government assassin in John Badham's remake of French director Luc Besson's La Femme Nikita, Point of No Return and as Tim Roth's girlfriend in Michael Steinberg's offbeat comedy based on Roger Hedden's play, Bodies, Rest and Motion (both in 1993). She also costarred with Keanu Reeves in Bernardo Bertolucci's true-story based Little Buddha (1993) and opposite Nicolas Cage, playing the waitress, in Andrew Bergman's wacky romantic comedy It Could Happen to You (1994).

In 1994, Bridget became Matthew Broderick's wife in Alan Parker's adaptation of the best-selling novel by T. Coraghessan Boyle, The Road to Wellville and teamed with Jessica Tandy to play the tentative young wife in Deepa Mehta's warm comedy Camilla. The next year, she starred as a pretty, apprentice magician in Clare Peploe's directorial debut film, adopted from the novel “Miss Shumway Waves A Wand” by James Hadley Chase, Rough Magic (opposite Russell Crowe) and lent her voice in Balto, alongside Kevin Bacon and Bob Hoskins. She also acted opposite Al Pacino and John Cusack, playing the widow of a narcotics detective, in Harold Becker's urban thriller City Hall (1996) and played Christopher Walken's promoter pal in Paul Schrader's adaptation of a novel by Elmore Leonard, Touch (1997).

An Emmy nomination arrived after Bridget costarred as the sister of a man suffering from AIDS’ complications (played by Robert Sean Leonard), opposite Diane Kagan and Glenn Close, in the sensitive, spiritual TV movie version of Alice Elliott Dark's short story, In the Gloaming (1997, helmed by Christopher Reeve). In writer-director Noah Baumbach's critically acclaimed romantic comedy Mr. Jealousy (starring Eric Stoltz), Bridget had a cameo role as Chris Eigeman's stuttering girlfriend and portrayed a "pot-head" bimbo kept by Samuel L Jackson in Quentin Tarantino's first feature, Jackie Brown (both in 1997) adopted from Elmore Leonard's novel "Rum Punch.”

The rest of the 1990s saw Bridget star as the abused wife and prime suspect in Paul Marcus's Break Up (costarring Kiefer Sutherland), play Bill Paxton's scheming pregnant wife in Sam Raimi's tight, effective thriller inspired by Scott B. Smith's novel, A Simple Plan (starring Billy Bob Thornton) and appear as a Mississippi casino Marilyn Monroe impersonator in David Winkler's feature directing debut Finding Graceland (starring Harvey Keitel). She also costarred with Bill Pullman in Steve Miner's small-town horror comedy Lake Placid, which was written and produced by Ally McBeal creator David E. Kelley.

Entering the new millennium, Bridget Fonda joined then-boyfriend, actor-director Dwight Yoakam in the Western drama South of Heaven, West of Hell. After an appearance in Nick Castle's comedy Delivering Milo (2001, starring Anton Yelchin), Bridget costarred as Brendan Fraser's girlfriend in Henry Selick's fantasy adventure Monkeybone and teamed with Jet Li in Chris Nahon's Kiss of the Dragon, playing a US farm girl and one of Tchéky Karyo's hookers. George Zaloom then cast her to costar with Giancarlo Giannini and Stanley Tucci in his romantic comedy The Whole Shebang.

On the small screen, Bridget Fonda starred as reporter Linda Sanclair, who gets the scoop on the first-ever human cloning, in After Amy (2001) and earned Golden Globe’s Best Performance by an Actress in a Mini-Series or a Motion Picture Made for Television nomination. She also played the title role in the Hallmark TV production Snow Queen (2002) and appeared in Showtime's musical comedy series "The Chris Isaak Show" (2001-2004), portraying the singer's girlfriend Stephanie Furst (2002). Additionally, Bridget Fonda branched out in modeling, doing print ads and catalogue work as a lingerie model for the popular fashion retailer H&M in 2001.

"I've just always gone in my own direction and done things in my own way for my own reasons. That's a healthy way of rebelling, because you don't destroy yourself." Bridget Fonda


Awards:

- Catalonian International Film Festival, Sitges, Spain: Best Actress, Rough Magic, 1995