Jodie Foster says in a new interview with NPR that she was “saved” from sexual abuse in Hollywood because she achieved power in the industry at a young age. Part of that power comes from being nominated for an Oscar at age 12 for Martin Scorsese’s Taxi Driver. This film gave Foster a more secure position in Hollywood than other teenage actors.
“I had to really look into it. How did I get saved? Of course there were microaggressions,” the two-time Oscar winner said. “Anyone in the workplace has experienced misogynistic microaggressions. That’s just part of being a woman, right? But what kept me from having such a terrible experience, such a terrible experience? And I’ve come to believe that…by the time I was about 12 years old, I had some power. I mean, by the time I got my first Oscar nomination, I was part of a different category of people who had power and it was too dangerous to touch.”If I wasn’t worried about people’s careers, I wouldn’t have been blocked. ”
“Maybe it’s just my personality that I’m a thinking person and approach the world head-on,” Foster continued. “It’s very difficult to manipulate me emotionally, because I don’t act on my emotions. Predators use whatever they can to manipulate people and get them to do what they want. And it’s much easier to do that when they’re young, weak, and powerless. Predatory behavior is just that: using power to degrade and control people.”
Although Foster didn’t have to personally face sexual abuse in Hollywood as a teenager, he would later become a role model for other actors who suffer from sexualization and harassment in the industry. Natalie Portman revealed last year that Foster called her after hearing Portman talk about being sexualized as a child star on an episode of the podcast Smartless.
“I gave a speech at the Women’s March about being sexualized as a young actress, and then she contacted me and we talked and it was amazing,” Portman said. “She’s still a role model.”
Like Foster, Portman was 11 years old when she landed her breakthrough role in Leon: The Professional. The Oscar winner said she learned from an early age to project a tough exterior on film sets to avoid sexual objectification by potential predators. Portman added that while she was working as a child actress, her mother “was always with me and made sure no one got close to me.”
“That kind of projection of seriousness protected me in a way,” she said. “Because I think that was a warning signal, like, ‘Oh, don’t be horrible to her.’ You know, no one deserves that, and I don’t ask for that. But I felt like that was my subconscious way of doing it.”
To read Foster’s full interview, visit NPR’s website.
