After the death of Hollywood great Robert Redford, his friends and former colleagues are paying tribute. Jane Fonda, Redford’s costar from several films spanning over 50 years, said the news of his death at age 89 on Tuesday hit her “hard.

Jane Fonda honored her longtime friend and frequent co-star Robert Redford following the news that the legendary actor and director died Sept. 16 at age 89. “It hit me hard this morning when I read that Bob was gone. I can’t stop crying,” Fonda, 87, said in a statement obtained by TODAY.com.

In a statement shared with various outlets, Fonda said of Redford, whom she was friends with for over six decades, "It hit me hard this morning when I read that Bob was gone. I can’t stop crying. He meant a lot to me and was a beautiful person in every way. He stood for an America we have to keep fighting for."

Redford had been a star for nearly his entire adult life, and in the 1970s he was the biggest movie star in the world.