In 2017, Megyn Kelly jumped ship from Fox to NBC to host the third hour of the morning show, TODAY. But not long after it began, which only aired for two years before being canceled by NBC following her controversial remarks, Kelly landed in some serious hot water following her interview with Jane Fonda.
Having had a facelift in her 40s and later in the 2010s, Jane Fonda was caught off-guard after Kelly brought up the question about her plastic surgery during the promotion of Our Souls at Night. While Fonda brushed off the subject at the time, she later expressed her distaste for Kelly’s skills as an interviewer, which the former Fox alum didn’t take kindly, as she went on to bring up Fonda’s controversial past.
Megyn Kelly Clarified Why She Brought up Jane Fonda’s Facelift
Megyn Kelly explained she only asked the question in order to stray away from the discussion Jane Fonda was delving into. Considering Fonda “kept wanting to talk about being in bed with Robert Redford”, between breaks, Redford’s publicist asked Kelly to change the topic, which led her to bring up Fonda’s facelift.
She explained (via the New York Post),
“Jane Fonda was on set [at NBC in 2017] and so was Robert Redford … and she had been doing a publicity tour with all this weird s-x talk about him. She kept wanting to talk about being in bed with Robert Redford in the movie. And you could tell he was visibly uncomfortable with it,” Kelly said. “And during the commercial break, Robert Redford’s publicist specifically asked me if I would try to keep her off of that, if I would redirect the conversation to something else,”
However, the duo’s back and forth didn’t end there, as it further escalated after Fonda made critical remarks about the exchange, stressing that it was inappropriate on Kelly’s part. This prompted the former NBC host to bring up the Barbarella Star’s controversial past during the height of the Vietnamese war, as Kelly shared no regrets about bringing up the actor’s facelift in the interview.
Megyn Kelly Questioned Jane Fonda’s Patriotism by Bringing up Her Past
Back in ’72, Jane Fonda, who was opposing the US war effort, was photographed on a North Vietnamese anti-aircraft gun, which earned the nickname Hanai Jane. Megyn Kelly went on to bring up the controversial subject, as she questioned the Book Club Star’s patriotism, stressing she was in no position to lecture her. Kelly said (via Page Six),
“By the way she still says she’s not proud of America. So, the moral indignation is a little much. She put her plastic surgery out there. She said she wanted to discuss the plight of older women in America. And honestly she has no business lecturing anyone on what qualifies as offensive.”
Fonda did go on to apologize about the matter, stressing that she made a huge mistake, which led many to believe she was against the US Army.
