Washington Square Park James' novel, "Washington Square". The park appears in a pivotal scene in the 1999 film The Astronaut's Wife. The park was featured extensively in the 2007 film "I Am Legend". The protagonist, Dr. Robert Neville, played by Will Smith, lived directly across the street from the park. It was used as a major action piece, especially in the last scenes of the film. Washington Square is the titular park in the 1967 Jane Fonda and Robert Redford vehicle Barefoot in the Park (film); taking its title from the climatic scene, where Corie says Paul is so uptight, that he won't
Jane Fonda was good. At anything. It was a turning point in my life. I went to bed thinking about acting. I woke up thinking about acting. It was like the roof had come off my life!" Fonda's stage work in the late 1950s laid the foundation for her film career in the 1960s. She averaged almost two movies a year throughout the decade, starting in 1960 with "Tall Story", in which she recreated one of her Broadway roles as a college cheerleader pursuing a basketball star, played by Anthony Perkins. Frequent collaborator Robert Redford also made his debut in that film.