---
name: "Bridget Fonda"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/bridget-fonda"
fi1m_id: "bridget-fonda"
imdb_id: "nm0000403"
tmdb_id: 2233
wikidata_id: "Q913872"
roles: ["Actor"]
born: "27 January 1964"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 8
average_fi1m_score: 77
average_as: "actor"
average_over: 6
updated: "2026-10-04T21:50:19.779267+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Bridget Fonda

## Identity

Bridget Fonda

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/person/bridget-fonda
- **Type:** Person
- **Fi1m ID:** bridget-fonda
- **IMDb ID:** nm0000403
- **TMDB ID:** 2233
- **Wikidata ID:** Q913872
- **Same entity:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bridget_Fonda, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q913872, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000403/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/2233

Actor. Born 27 January 1964 in Los Angeles, California, USA.

## Details

- **Work:** Actor
- **Born:** 27 January 1964, Los Angeles, California, USA
- **Active:** 1989–1999
- **Also known as:** Bridget Jane Fonda
- **Titles on Fi1m:** 8: 6 acting, 2 other
- **Average Fi1m score:** 77, as actor, over 6 titles
- **Fi1m score by decade:** 1960s 76 (1), 1980s 66 (1), 1990s 74 (6)
- **Fi1m against the critics:** 79 to 76 across 5 titles
- **Score spread:** 3 at 80+, 3 at 60–79, 0 under 60
- **Lead roles:** 1 of 5 acting credits billed first or second
- **Genres:** Drama 5, Crime 3, Thriller 3, Comedy 2, Romance 2, History 1
- **Screen time:** 11 hours of reviewed films
- **Box office:** $255m across 5 films with figures
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bridget_Fonda, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q913872, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000403/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/2233

## Streaming the US now

- **The Roku Channel:** [*Singles*](https://film.one/film/singles.md) (74)
- **Paramount+:** [*The Godfather Part III*](https://film.one/film/the-godfather-part-iii.md) (63)

For United States; add `?region=XX` for another country.

## Fi1m on Bridget Fonda

> Bridget Fonda can make a woman lying on a sofa the sharpest person in a crime film. We rate her dry humour and understatement most when a thriller gives her someone morally awkward to play.

In *Jackie Brown* (1997), Bridget Fonda's Melanie Ralston lies on a sofa and needles the people around her. Robert De Niro's Louis lets conversations drift past; she has their measure, and Fonda gives her laziness a cunning edge. We laughed because Melanie's judgements are so accurate, however little kindness there is in making them. Quentin Tarantino gives her room to be disagreeable without demanding that she become more likeable. It is a sharply defined supporting part in a film whose middle runs too long, and a good place to see how little she needs to do.

Her breakthrough was Grace Hamilton in *The Godfather Part III* (1990). She went on to play Allison Jones in *Single White Female* (1992) and Maggie Hayward in the action-thriller remake *Point of No Return* (1993). Across the nineties she moved between thrillers, comedies and dramas, taking leading and supporting parts. Our preference is for the crime films, where her naturalistic style makes dubious people easy to recognise.

*A Simple Plan* (1998) puts that quality to harsher use in Sarah Mitchell, a wife whose greed helps enable crime. Sam Raimi's patience gives the characters' choices time to hurt, with Bill Paxton and Billy Bob Thornton central to the film's force. Fonda's understatement is useful here: Sarah's greed belongs to a recognisable person, and that makes it harder to dismiss. The plotting can be predictable, but we rated the film highly because the people matter enough to make its warning painful.

Tarantino gets the more immediately enjoyable result from her, though *Jackie Brown* rightly reserves its best scenes for Pam Grier and Robert Forster. Her final screen role came in the television film *Snow Queen* (2002), but we would rather watch the performances than speculate about the parts she might have played. There is enough to attend to in the work she did. Start with Melanie; save *A Simple Plan* for an evening when pleasant company is not a requirement.

## Biography

Bridget Fonda is an American retired actress. She is the daughter of actor Peter Fonda, niece of Jane Fonda and granddaughter of Henry Fonda. She trained at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts and the Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute, graduating in 1986.

Fonda began her screen career in the late 1980s. Her film roles include *Scandal* (1989), *The Godfather Part III* (1990), *Single White Female* (1992), *Singles* (1992), *Point of No Return* (1993), *Jackie Brown* (1997) as Melanie Ralston, *A Simple Plan* (1998) and *Lake Placid* (1999). She received a Golden Globe nomination for Best Supporting Actress for *Scandal*. Fonda retired from acting in 2002. She is married to composer Danny Elfman.

*Sources: en.wikipedia.org, imdb.com.*

## On Fi1m (8)

### Performed in (6) — the average rests on these

- *A Simple Plan* (1998), Fi1m 86, as Sarah Mitchell — [page](https://film.one/film/a-simple-plan.md)
- *Jackie Brown* (1997), Fi1m 83, as Melanie Ralston — [page](https://film.one/film/jackie-brown.md)
- *Singles* (1992), Fi1m 74, as Janet Livermore — [page](https://film.one/film/singles.md)
- *The Larry Sanders Show* (1992), Fi1m 91, as Bridget Fonda — [page](https://film.one/tv/the-larry-sanders-show.md)
- *The Godfather Part III* (1990), Fi1m 63, as Grace Hamilton — [page](https://film.one/film/the-godfather-part-iii.md)
- *Scandal* (1989), Fi1m 66, as Mandy Rice-Davies — [page](https://film.one/film/scandal.md)

### Also credited (2) — thanks, archive footage, uncredited

- *Drop Dead Fred* (1991), Fi1m 48, as Annabella (uncredited) — [page](https://film.one/film/drop-dead-fred.md)
- *Easy Rider* (1969), Fi1m 76, as Child in Commune (uncredited) — [page](https://film.one/film/easy-rider.md)

## Complete filmography (50)

Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page.

- *A Danny Elfman Christmas Story* (2025), as Photo Retouching
- *Snow Queen* (2002), as Snow Queen
- *Snow Queen* (2002), series, as Snow Queen
- *No Ordinary Baby* (2001), as Linda Sanclair
- *Night Visions* (2001), series, as Mary (segment "The Occupant")
- *Kiss of the Dragon* (2001), as Jessica
- *The Chris Isaak Show* (2001), series, Actor
- *Monkeybone* (2001), as Dr. Julie McElroy
- *The Whole Shebang* (2001), as Val Bazinni
- *Delivering Milo* (2001), as Elizabeth
- *South of Heaven, West of Hell* (2000), as Adalyne Dunfries
- *Lake Placid* (1999), as Kelly Scott
- *A Simple Plan* (1998), as Sarah Mitchell — Fi1m 86, [page](https://film.one/film/a-simple-plan.md)
- *Finding Graceland* (1998), as Ashley
- *Break Up* (1998), as Jimmy Dade
- *Mr. Jealousy* (1998), as Irene
- *Jackie Brown* (1997), as Melanie Ralston — Fi1m 83, [page](https://film.one/film/jackie-brown.md)
- *In the Gloaming* (1997), as Anne
- *Touch* (1997), as Lynn Faulkner
- *Grace of My Heart* (1996), as Kelly Porter
- *City Hall* (1996), as Marybeth Cogan
- *Balto* (1995), as Jenna (voice)
- *Rough Magic* (1995), as Myra Shumway
- *Camilla* (1994), as Freda Lopez
- *The Road to Wellville* (1994), as Eleanor Lightbody
- *It Could Happen to You* (1994), as Yvonne Biasi
- *Little Buddha* (1993), as Lisa Conrad
- *Bodies, Rest & Motion* (1993), as Beth
- *Point of No Return* (1993), as Maggie Hayward
- *Army of Darkness* (1992), as Linda
- *The Godfather Trilogy: 1901-1980* (1992), as Grace Hamilton
- *Singles* (1992), as Janet Livermore — Fi1m 74, [page](https://film.one/film/singles.md)
- *The Larry Sanders Show* (1992), series, as Bridget Fonda — Fi1m 91, [page](https://film.one/tv/the-larry-sanders-show.md)
- *Single White Female* (1992), as Allison 'Allie' Jones
- *Leather Jackets* (1992), as Claudi
- *Iron Maze* (1991), as Chris Sugita
- *Doc Hollywood* (1991), as Nancy Lee Nicholson
- *Out of the Rain* (1991), as Jo
- *Drop Dead Fred* (1991), as Annabella (uncredited) — Fi1m 48, [page](https://film.one/film/drop-dead-fred.md)
- *The Godfather Part III* (1990), as Grace Hamilton — Fi1m 63, [page](https://film.one/film/the-godfather-part-iii.md)
- *Frankenstein Unbound* (1990), as Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin
- *The Edge* (1989), as Dorite (Professional Man)
- *Strapless* (1989), as Amy Hempel
- *Jacob Have I Loved* (1989), as Louise Bradshaw
- *Shag* (1989), as Melaina Buller
- *Scandal* (1989), as Mandy Rice-Davies — Fi1m 66, [page](https://film.one/film/scandal.md)
- *You Can't Hurry Love* (1988), as Peggy Kellogg
- *Aria* (1987), as Lover
- *21 Jump Street* (1987), series, as Molly 'Moho' Chapman
- *Easy Rider* (1969), as Child in Commune (uncredited) — Fi1m 76, [page](https://film.one/film/easy-rider.md)

## Gallery

- ![Bridget Fonda](https://film.one/media/person/9136/gallery-006ee1b5faad.jpg) Bridget Fonda — Rita Molnár, CC BY-SA 2.5, via Wikimedia Commons (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/29/Bridget_Fonda.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled)
- ![Kiss of the Dragon es una película francesa de acción y artes marciales del año 2001 con Chris Nahon como director, Jet Li como protagonista y Luc Besson como g (2022)](https://film.one/media/person/9136/gallery-5b0d5e46343d.jpg) Kiss of the Dragon es una película francesa de acción y artes marciales del año 2001 con Chris Nahon como director, Jet Li como protagonista y Luc Besson como g (2022) — Unknown, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fe/Kiss_of_the_dragon.jpg/1280px-Kiss_of_the_dragon.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Bridget Fonda](https://film.one/media/person/9136/gallery-2476cfa91dff.jpg) Bridget Fonda — Image via TMDB
- ![Bridget Fonda](https://film.one/media/person/9136/gallery-056bc032948a.jpg) Bridget Fonda — Image via TMDB
- ![Bridget Fonda](https://film.one/media/person/9136/gallery-100b5a7124d2.jpg) Bridget Fonda — Image via TMDB

## Awards

### Other awards — 1 won

- Sitges Film Festival Best Actress award 1995: Sitges Film Festival Best Actress award (won), for *Rough Magic*

*From Wikidata, which records wins more completely than nominations.*

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/bridget-fonda