Acclaimed actress Jane Fonda has opened up about her past experiences with rape and sexual abuse during her childhood.

In a conversation with fellow Oscar-winning actress Brie Larson for The Edit, the 79-year-old Fonda also disclosed an incident where she lost a job due to her refusal to submit to her boss’s sexual demands.

Fonda expressed her concern about the challenges young actresses face in today’s entertainment industry, citing the increased pressure to appear naked and the intensified focus on physical appearance.

She spoke candidly about feeling “diminished” in her early years as a result of the patriarchal attitudes held by the men in her life and admitted to struggling with a “disease to please.”

Fonda emphasized the pervasiveness of patriarchal influence, recounting her experiences of rape, childhood sexual abuse, and job loss due to her refusal to sleep with her boss.

She acknowledged that she had long blamed herself for these incidents, believing that she had not acted or spoken correctly.

Fonda expressed gratitude for the women’s movement, which has helped many women understand that they are not at fault for experiencing rape or abuse.

A long-time activist for women’s rights, Fonda has actively supported organizations such as the Rape Foundation and the Rape Treatment Centre in Los Angeles.

In 2014, she shared that her mother, Frances Ford Seymour, had been sexually abused at the age of eight and ultimately took her own life when Fonda was 12.

In recognition of International Women’s Day, the Grace and Frankie star expressed her satisfaction with the current fight to close the gender pay gap in the entertainment industry.

Fonda admitted that, during her career’s peak in the 1970s and 1980s, she did not consider the pay disparity to be an issue and never felt she was worth more than she was paid.

Daughter of Oscar-winning actor Henry Fonda, Jane Fonda has received seven Oscar nominations and won the Academy Award for Best Actress twice – for her roles in the crime thriller Klute (1971) and the war romance Coming Home (1979).

Fonda is also known for her work in iconic films such as Barbarella, 9 to 5, and On Golden Pond, in which she starred alongside her father.