Ever since her performance in Taxi Driver, Jodie Foster has continued to be one of the most fearless creative forces in Hollywood, despite the scrutiny of growing up on screen and navigating fame from a young age. After her early work with Martin Scorsese, the actor showed a mature in cinema, collaborating with the likes of Alan Parker, Jonathan Demme and David Fincher, starring in pivotal classics such as the iconic Bugsy Malone, the harrowing story of Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs and her ferocious protection of a young Kristen Stewart in Panic Room, looping back to her beginnings as a child actor herself.
However, Hollywood has never been an easy place to work, something that Foster encountered from a young age after intense public backlash for her role in Taxi Driver, almost sparking the assassination of an American president and leading her to consider leaving the limelight entirely. After a brief period away from fame, in which the actor studied at the renowned Yale University, Foster returned to the industry with a newfound sense of wisdom about how to navigate the choppy waters of the business and her three golden rules.
Actors are already asked to give so much of themselves to a project, laying their emotions bare and making themselves vulnerable in front of the entire cast and crew. However, this is something that isn’t always treated kindly by directors that Foster has worked with, describing the golden rules she has created for herself when working on new projects.
Foster explained, “Never make an actor feel like shit. The director who says you suck, you’re ugly, and you can’t do a fucking thing”. It’s hard to imagine that anyone could leverage these insults against Foster, and it’s especially worrying that this has been her experience in the industry. But it goes without saying that actors will do their best work when they feel nurtured and respected, and nothing fruitful will come from bullying.
Foster also described her distrust of people who are intimidated by her fame or presence, preferring to know how to read people and work with them on a human level. When discussing this, Foster said, “I don’t like people that are afraid of me. It bugs me to have people who are obsequious. If someone’s humoring or manipulative, I won’t have it. The truth I can handle. I can’t handle NOT knowing what they’re thinking or feeling.”
Many people find themselves jaded by fame and acting in strange ways around those they admire, but celebrities are normal people just like anyone else, and the so-called special treatment can sometimes be disorienting and strange, adding to the non-human perception of actors and how the public views them. Foster simply wants to work with good people, foster a positive working environment, and work on projects she cares about.
