Grace Hanson (Jane Fonda) and Frankie Bergstein (Lily Tomlin) have come a long way since the beginning of “Grace and Frankie.” The two began their journey with mutual dislike, forced to spend time together because their husbands (Martin Sheen and Sam Waterston) were work partners. But Grace and Frankie suddenly became a lot closer once their husbands came out as life partners.
A newly released trailer for the series’ third season sees the former frenemies going into business together.
“We make vibrators,” Grace announces proudly to the loan officer the duo are trying to win over. “Specifically designed for older women that take into account their arthritis…”
“[And] tender vaginal tissue…” Frankie chimes in.
Unfortunately, the meeting doesn’t go well and the trailer hints at a lot of frustrating investment meetings for their product, the perfectly-named Ménage à Moi.
Of course, there are other obstacles, namely the ladies constantly butting heads as business partners. “So here’s the plan,” Grace tells Frankie before one of their meetings. “I’ll talk first and I’ll keep talking and you don’t talk.” Frankie, for her part, gets fed up with Grace’s control freak tendencies.
Shortly after “Grace and Frankie” debuted in 2015, Fonda and Tomlin found out that they were earning the same as Sheen and Waterston, who play supporting characters. The pair went public with the news, one of the first instances of the recent wave of actresses opening up about the gender pay gap in Hollywood. “[Tomlin] found out [Waterston and Sheen] are getting the same salary that we are,” Fonda revealed at a Netflix press event. “That doesn’t make us happy.”
“The show is not ‘Sol and Robert,’” added Tomlin, referring to Waterston and Sheen’s characters. “It’s ‘Grace and Frankie.’”
Fonda, who was honored by TCM as part of their “Trailblazing Women” series, recently appeared in the features “Youth” and “Fathers & Daughters.” Tomlin received the Life Achievement Award at the SAG Awards in January. Her most recent credit is “Grandma,” in which she portrayed Elle, a poet trying to find the cash for her granddaughter’s abortion.
Season 3 of “Grace and Frankie” premieres March 24 on Netflix . Marta Kauffmann (“Friends”) co-created the series, which co-stars Brooklyn Decker, Ethan Embry, June Diane Raphael, Baron Vaughn, and Ernie Hudson.
