She’s known for her liberal views, but that didn’t stop Jane Fonda from accepting a role in The Butler, where she’ll play Republican president Ronald Reagan‘s wife, Nancy.
Oprah Winfrey, 58, shared a photo from the set via Instagram September 10 featuring Fonda, 74, in full hair and makeup as the former First Lady, now 91. The women were joined by Alan Rickman, 66, who plays the late Ronald, and director Lee Daniels.
Partially based on a true story, The Butler tells the tale of Eugene Allen (Forest Whitaker, 51), an African American man who worked as a butler in the White House between 1952 and 1986; Winfrey plays his wife.
The Butler also stars James Marsden, 38, and Minka Kelly, 32, as John F. Kennedy and Jacqueline Kennedy; John Cusack, 46, as Richard Nixon; Robin Williams, 61, and Melissa Leo, 51, as Dwight Eisenhower and Mamie Eisenhower; Liev Schreiber, 44, as Lyndon B. Johnson; and Nelsan Ellis, 33, as Martin Luther King, Jr.
“I’m in the makeup trailer next to Oprah, Lenny Kravitz and Forest Whitaker getting into my Nancy Reagan look,” Fonda tweeted September 10. “Life is good.”
In an August 26 blog post on her official website, fitness guru Fonda said she is “excited” to portray the former First Lady: “I feel very ready to take her on. I wish it was more than a cameo.”
“I’m glad that in the brief time I have to play her, the script allows us to see how involved she was in all matters surrounding her husband. . .almost like a chief of staff. She took a lot of flack for the china she purchased for White House affairs, etc., but she was no fluff piece,” the Oscar-winning actress said. “Whatever her politics, it seems that Mrs. Reagan was ultimately concerned about how policy positions would impact Ronnie’s legacy, which is why she pushed for the summit with the Russians and wanted more moderates on his staff. Who knew!”
Other actors slated to appear in The Butler include Alex Pettyfer, 22, Cuba Gooding Jr., 44, Terrence Howard, 43, Jesse Williams, 31, Yaya DaCosta, 29, and Vanessa Redgrave, 75.
