Ted Turner's Five Children Seek to Manage Estate, Jane Fonda Not Named

The five children of CNN founder Ted Turner have asked to administer their late father's estate, with his former wife, actress Jane Fonda, absent from the list of beneficiaries identified in the estate documents.

Laura Turner Seydel, Robert "Teddy" Turner IV, Rhett Turner, Beau Turner and Jennie Turner Garlington are seeking appointment as executors of the billionaire media mogul's estate. All five are identified as heirs in the probate petition filed following Turner's death.

Turner died on May 6, 2026, at age 87 at his home in Florida. His fortune came from decades of investments in broadcasting, real estate and other businesses, including the media empire he built after founding CNN in 1980.

The estate documents include a trust established in 2003 that Turner amended repeatedly over the following two decades. His final reported revision came in 2025, less than a year before his death.

Under the provisions described in the filing, Turner's heirs are directed to settle outstanding debts and handle business obligations. The documents also allow investments to be sold when necessary to meet financial obligations during the administration of his estate.

Fonda married Turner in 1991, becoming his third wife. Their marriage ended in divorce in 2001, although the two maintained a friendship in the years that followed. She publicly praised the businessman after his death.

Turner's children were born during his previous marriages. Laura and Robert are from his marriage to Judy Nye, while Rhett, Beau and Jennie are from his marriage to Janie Smith. Turner and Fonda had no children together.

Divorce generally ends a former spouse's automatic inheritance rights, although a will or trust can expressly provide for an ex-spouse. Financial arrangements established during Turner and Fonda's divorce would be separate from the inheritance provisions identified in the estate documents.

The children's petition seeks legal authority to administer assets passing through probate, including paying debts and distributing property under the estate documents. Assets held in trusts can be managed separately according to the terms established by the person who created them.

Turner's holdings extended beyond his broadcasting ventures to extensive ranch properties, conservation projects and philanthropic organizations across the United States.

The five children are seeking court approval to oversee the estate's administration. Their formal appointment and the full distribution of Turner's assets have yet to be established through independently reviewed court records.