Tommy Lee Jones explained why he once ‘fired’ daughter Victoria before her sudden death aged 34
Victoria Jones had worked with her father on a number of occasions before her death
No Country for Old Men actor Tommy Lee Jones once shared fond memories of working with his daughter, Victoria, ahead of her sudden death this week at the age of 34.
Victoria Jones is reported to have died at the Fairmont hotel in San Francisco in the early hours of New Year’s Day, with the San Francisco Fire Department confirming that paramedics responded to a call at the hotel’s address at around 2:52am.
Paramedics found a deceased individual at the scene, after which the local police department and medical examiner’s office took control over the case.
The cause of death is not yet known.
Victoria was Jones’ youngest child with his second wife, Kimberlea Cloughley, and early in her life Victoria followed in her father’s footsteps in the world of acting, and appeared alongside him in the 2002 movie Men in Black II.
Victoria worked with her father on Men In Black when she was a child (Ken Ishii/Getty Images)
Three years later, she worked with Jones on the 2005 movie The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada, which he both starred in and directed.
In an interview with The New Yorker released on January 2, 2006 – almost exactly 20 years before Victoria’s death – Jones spoke fondly of his daughter’s work in the movie, in which she played a young Mexican girl.
Jones said of Victoria, who was just 14 at the time: “She’s a good actress, has her SAG card, speaks impeccable Spanish. When she was a baby, I told Leticia, her nurse, to speak to her in Spanish.”
However, just because she was his daughter didn’t mean Jones went easy on Victoria.
He continued: “I fired my daughter. She had to get up at 5 A.M. for her part. One morning, she wouldn’t get out of bed.”
Jones didn’t let his daughter sleep in while working together (David Mareuil/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)
Jones went on to recall how he encouraged his daughter to wake up, saying: “I said, ‘Honey, this is work.’ But she wouldn’t budge.”
Needing Victoria to realize that her actions had consequences, Jones continued: “So I fired her.”
Thankfully, however, Victoria’s role in the movie was saved with the help of the production staff, who Jones said went over to Victoria ‘without telling him’ and managed to wake her up, before rushing her out to set ‘just in time’.
Condolences have been flooding in for Victoria’s family in the wake of the news, with one fan writing on X: “My thoughts are with Tommy and the family, losing a child is unimaginable. Hug your loved ones tight, life’s twists can be harsher than any movie script.”
Featured Image Credit: Ian Gavan/Getty
Tommy Lee Jones’ daughter Victoria found dead at 34 in San Francisco hotel
Victoria was the youngest of the actor’s two children and had previously starred alongside him in Men in Black II
Tommy Lee Jones’ daughter, Victoria Jones, has sadly died at a California hotel, according to authorities.
The 34-year-old was discovered at the Fairmont hotel in San Francisco on Thursday morning (January 1) after suffering a medical emergency, reports TMZ.
According to the San Francisco Fire Department, paramedics responded to a call at the hotel’s address at around 2:52am, and upon arriving at the scene alongside paramedics, they discovered a deceased individual (via People).
“Bystanders were given instructions for CPR according to CAD records,” the spokesperson said.
Speaking about the incident, as per the Daily Mail, a spokesperson for the San Francisco Police Department said: “On 1/1/26 at approximately 3:14 a.m., San Francisco Police officers responded to a hotel located on the 900 block of Mason Street regarding a report of a deceased person.”
Victoria was the youngest of Tommy Lee Jones’ two children (KAZUHIRO NOGI/AFP via Getty Images)
The statement continued: “At the scene, officers met with medics, who declared the adult female deceased. The Medical Examiner arrived on scene and conducted an investigation. Anyone with information is asked to contact the SFPD at 415-575-4444 or Text a Tip to TIP411 and begin the message with SFPD.”
The San Francisco Police Department and Medical Examiner will now investigate the case. No cause of death is yet known; however, NBC Bay Area have said that foul play is not suspected.
Born in 1991, Victoria was the youngest child of the famous actor and his second wife, Kimberlea Cloughley, with whom he also shares son Austin Jones, 43.
She was soon caught by the acting bug and followed in her dad’s footsteps, acting alongside him in Men in Black II.
Keen to branch out on her own, she also starred in a handful of other productions, including One Tree Hill and The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada.
Victoria regularly supported her dad on the red carpet (Ken Ishii/Getty Images)
Reflecting on his daughter’s aptitude for the arts, proud dad Tommy previously told the New Yorker in 2006 that she was a ‘good actress, has her sag card, speaks impeccable Spanish… When she was a baby, I told Leticia, her nurse, to speak to her in Spanish’.
Despite her success, however, in recent years she had stepped away from the limelight but still appeared on occasion to support her dad on the red carpet, particularly at film festivals.
Tommy is, of course, an Oscar-winning actor, best known for his roles in iconic films such as The Fugitive, No Country for Old Men, Jason Bourne and even Captain America: The First Avenger.
UNILAD have reached out to the San Francisco Police Department, the Medical Examiner’s Office, the Fire Department, and representatives of Tommy Lee Jones for comment.
Featured Image Credit: Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic
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