Jane Fonda to star in TV comedy Now What?

The American actress, now 74, will take the lead in the pilot for Now What? - a single camera comedy from Pushing Daisies scribe Abby Gewanter.

The show will see Fonda play a disgruntled mother who decides to move in with her daughter in an effort to mend their relationship after the latter takes to the internet to write a blog entitled "Dear Mom, Here's Why I Hate You...", reports Variety.

The two-time Oscar-winner is perhaps best known for her work on the silver screen in films such as Barberella, 9 to 5 and They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? She also enjoyed huge success from her self-titled fitness videos in the 1980s, which sold more than 17 million copies worldwide.

There's no firm update yet on when the new series will air, or even if it will get past the pilot stage. But the news may have a knock-on effect for fans of The Newsroom - Aaron Sorkin’s fast paced drama about life on the US cable news networks, which airs on Sky Atlantic.

Fonda made her TV debut on the series earlier this year and won plaudits for her portrayal of CEO Leona Lansing, with some people even tipping her for a Golden Globe nomination. She’s set to return for the show’s second series which will air in 2013, but if Now What? proves to be a success over on ABC, then scheduling issues may mean that she has to be written out of the show.