Jodie Foster facts: Actress's age, movies, wife, children and career explained

8 March 2024, 11:06

Jodie Foster's career on screen has been one marked by many changes but always major success.

An enormously respected and decorated actress and filmmaker, Jodie Foster's career has spanned over fifty years.

Starring in a host of iconic movies such as Silence of the Lambs, Nell, Taxi Driver, The Accused, Bugsy Malone, Panic Room, and Contact, she has even stepped behind the camera.

Foster has directed episodes of Black Mirror, Orange Is The New Black, and the films Home For The Holidays, Little Man Tate, and The Beaver.

For her on-screen performances however, Foster has won numerous accolades and awards such as two Oscars, three BAFTAs, three Golden Globes Awards, and the Honorary Palme d'Or.

In 2024, she was nominated for her fifth and most recent Academy Award for her portrayal of Bonnie Stoll in the biographical drama Nyad, about swimmer Diana Nyad.

How old is Jodie Foster and when was she born?

1968 Jodie Foster TV ad Crest toothpaste

Alicia Christian Foster was born on 19th November 1962 in Los Angeles. In 2023, she celebrated her 61st birthday.

The youngest child of Evelyn Ella "Brandy" and Lucius Fisher Foster III, a wealthy businessman, her siblings called her "Jodie" from a young age despite her name being Alicia, and it stuck.

Her parents divorced before she was born, and she never truly developed a relationship with her father.

She was a gifted child, learning to speak French fluently at a young age, eventually going on to study at Yale University in the middle of her acting career.

How did Jodie Foster get her break in showbusiness?

Jodie Foster was cast in an advert at the age of three, after the casting agents noticed her when her mother brought her brother Buddy in to audition.

That led to various television appearances, with Foster becoming a child star appearing in a series of Disney films such as Napoleon and Samantha in 1972, and Martin Scorsese's Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore.

The latter would start a creative relationship with Scorsese which continued into his next film, the cult classic Taxi Driver, which transformed her into a teen idol.

Jodie starred as a young prostitute which acted as the catalyst for Robert De Niro's anti-hero Travis Bickle to snap.

De Niro said during filming that she had "serious potential", and his opinion was mirrored by the industry when Foster earned an Academy Award nomination and two BAFTA Awards for her performance.

She said it was a life-changing experience as it was "the first time anyone asked me to create a character that wasn't myself. It was the first time I realised that acting wasn't this hobby you just sort of did, but that there was actually some craft."

What did Jodie Foster have to do with the attempted assassination of President Ronald Reagan?

Whilst she was studying at Yale University, Jodie Foster was stalked by John Hinckley Jr. who became obsessed with her after watching Taxi Driver, which led to her needing bodyguards to accompany her on campus.

He emulated the storyline of the film and attempted to assassinate a political candidate, much like De Niro's character, just to impress her.

That politician was the current President Ronald Reagan however, who injured him and three other people, including his press secretary James Brady who was permanently disabled in the shooting.

Foster also reportedly has had several other stalkers throughout her early life, with one man planning to kill her but changing his mind after seeing her in a college play.

What are Jodie Foster's biggest films?

The Silence of the Lambs Official Trailer #1 - Anthony Hopkins Movie (1991) HD

- Silence of the Lambs

- Nell

- The Accused

- Anna and the King

- Taxi Driver

- Bugsy Malone

- Freaky Friday

- Panic Room

- Contact

- True Detective: Night Country (series)

When did Jodie Foster come out as gay?

Jodie Foster - Golden Globes 2013 Full Speech. [Extraordinary]

Jodie Foster publicly announced she was gay in an acceptance speech whilst receiving the Cecil B. DeMille Award at the Golden Globes in 2013.

Her sexuality was debated for years before, as early as 1991, when publications began reporting that she was a lesbian.

Is Jodie Foster married and does she have children?

Jodie Foster is married to photographer Alexandra Hedison, whom she married in 2014 after a year of dating.

She was in a previous relationship with producer Cydney Bernard who met on the set of Sommersby, who were together from 1993 to 2008.

In that time they had two sons together - born in 1998 and 2001 - though Bernard has never been officially recognised as the father.

What is Jodie Foster’s net worth?

Accused, The | Trailer (1988)

Jodie Foster's net worth is an estimated $100 million.

Anything else we should know about Jodie Foster?

Jodie Foster french interview on TV (INA archive)

Jodie Foster's fluency in French has meant she's acting in French films - such as A Very Long Engagement - but also dubs herself in the French-language versions of the majority of her English-speaking films too.

She said that motherhood was the "most creative thing that ever happened to me. It changed me in every possible way. It's special, it's great."

Despite the pressure on women (especially in Hollywood) to remain young forever, Foster has embraced the changes that come with ageing.

“I felt these huge shifts the day I turned 30 and the day I turned 60. And 60 was the best shift of all because I was struggling in my 50s. I was sort of like, 'Am I ever going to do anything meaningful again? Is this all there is?' Then something happened when I turned 60. I was like, 'I figured it out. This is good.'"