Jane Fonda Admits She's 'Not Proud' of Plastic Surgery

"But I grew up so defined by my looks," she said.

ByABC News
May 19, 2015, 12:07 PM
Jane Fonda attends the Kering Official Cannes Dinner at Place de la Castre, May 17, 2015, in Cannes, France.
Jane Fonda attends the Kering Official Cannes Dinner at Place de la Castre, May 17, 2015, in Cannes, France.
Venturelli/Getty Images

— -- Jane Fonda looks amazing at 77, but the icon admits "my relationship to fashion has always been strained."

It's a surprising comment for such an acclaimed actress, who still is the center of attention when she attends a premiere.

"When I was starting out as an actress in New York, I worked as a model because I needed to pay for acting classes. But I didn’t have what it took to be a model. I hated all the emphasis on how I looked, and I never paid much attention to clothes,” she told W magazine for its June/July cover.

Fonda is one of the newest Netflix stars, taking on the role of an older divorcee, whose husband left her for another man, in "Grace and Frankie." She told the magazine she's entering a new phase in her life and career and embracing her age. In fact, she says TV is "more forgiving for older women.”

"I realized I didn’t have a lot of time left," she added. “I had a vision: I wanted to give a cultural face to older women."

The Oscar winner also addressed her past plastic surgery.

"I did have plastic surgery. I’m not proud of the fact that I’ve had it. But I grew up so defined by my looks. I was taught to think that if I wanted to be loved, I had to be thin and pretty. That leads to a lot of trouble," she said.

She continued, “I’m older now, and I have to be more self-conscious. When you’re young, you can get away with more. I always thought that being self-conscious was a negative. But now I feel differently."