Jane Fonda Feels 'Badly' for Megyn Kelly Despite 'Today Show' Feud

Jane Fonda and Megyn Kelly didn't get along when Fonda visited Kelly's former Today segment to promote the film Our Souls at Night in September 2017.

But despite the tension between the women, Fonda was still empathetic toward Kelly in the wake of the news that her NBC daytime show, Megyn Kelly Today will be canceled.

"I feel badly, because, you know, I wanted her to make it. I did," Fonda said on Entertainment Tonight on Thursday. "That's always how everyone learns is through making mistakes, you know. It's through failure that we grow and learn. I know that has been true for me."

Fonda's appearance on Kelly's talk show marked one of the host's first major scandals after Kelly pressed Fonda about her history with plastic surgery. Referencing Fonda's own admittance of going under the knife, Kelly asked why the 80-year-old wasn't comfortable talking about her procedures. "I read that you said you're not proud to admit you have work done. Why not?" Kelly quizzed.

Fonda seemed obviously irritated by the question and responded, "We really want to talk about that right now?"

The actor credited her "good attitude, good posture" and self-care regiment for her good looks before adding, "But let me tell you why I love this movie, Our Souls at Night, rather than plastic surgery."

Following the show, Kelly received an onslaught of criticism from viewers who thought it was incongruous for her to question her about something so irrelevant as plastic surgery when Fonda was clearly there to talk about the movie along with her castmate Robert Redford.

Fonda also slammed the former Fox News host, later speaking with Variety magazine and calling the moment "so inappropriate."

Fonda added: "It showed that she's not that good of an interviewer."

Their feud only seemed to escalate when Kelly continued to talk about the incident, claiming on a later episode of her show that she was giving Fonda "a chance to empower other women, young and old, on a subject which she purports to know well."

Kelly went on to blast the Grace and Frankie actress, referring to her as "Hanoi Jane" while resurfacing Fonda's Vietnam War controversy, which included comments about prisoners of war being "hypocrites and liars."

"The moral indignation is a little much," Kelly stated. "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."

In the end, Kelly said she regretted the awkward exchange with Fonda and told Us Weekly wished she "hadn't put Jane Fonda" on the show. "That didn't go well!" she said.

Kelly's 9 a.m. slot with Today came to an end last week following her controversial claim about blackface being OK during her childhood. Her show got the boot, and her overall future with NBC is still unclear.