Jodie Foster Isn’t Scared of Ghosts or Lions, but Acting in French Made Her Nervous

With two Academy Awards and three BAFTAs to her name, Jodie Foster is one of the Anglophone world’s most accomplished actors. For Vie Privée (A Private Life), she decided to do something she’s never done before: take a starring role in a French film. Though she has spoken the language since childhood and appeared in 2004’s A Very Long Engagement, it took director Rebecca Zlotowski to persuade her to lead the project. In it, Foster plays an American expat therapist who veers into a double life as a private detective to investigate the death of one of her clients. The film premiered out of competition at the Cannes Film Festival, and Foster’s performance was widely hailed, with her talent and charisma cutting through any language barrier. Now 63, Foster credits her own nerves about the assignment with sharpening her character's neurotic nature. In W’s Best Performances portfolio, the actor discusses preparing for the part and her distinctly American love of football, Halloween, and Hollywood horror films.

Were you nervous about doing a film in French?

I’d done a few French movies in my life, but I’d never done one that had this much dialogue. I learned to speak French from the time I was 9 years old. I went to the Lycée Français, and in French my voice is very high, because I learned from all these women who spoke in high voices. I took that on, and my character in the film has a much more feminine way about her. I’ve always been known for my froggy voice. When I was little, they used to call me Froggy.

Knowing that you would be speaking another language, did you have a different acting process?

Mostly, I was scared. What if I said something wrong? The character is a Freudian psychiatrist, living her fantasy of a Parisian woman. She had to have some fabulous outfits. That, and the fact that I was speaking French, turned me into a whole new character.

In the film, there is a kind of ghost. Do you believe in ghosts?

In the film, the apparition or “the ghost” is her obsession, which has to do with her own guilt and her own accountability. I believe that there's a lot we don't know—that there are other energies in our lives. Does that mean I believe in ghosts? Yes, why not?

Are you superstitious by nature?

I’m superstitious in a very funny way. I will wear my team’s colors when I’m watching a football game. Green Bay is my team, so my colors are yellow (for cheese from Wisconsin) and green. I will break those out during the playoffs. And then, of course, I have T-shirts, headbands, and all kinds of stuff for the Rams because I’m a Los Angeleno. And sometimes, if my teams aren’t playing well, I’ll root for other people’s teams.

Have you always loved football?

As a kid, at the International House of Pancakes, every time you bought a pancake, they would give you a little helmet. I had a collection of helmets, which I still have today. Actually, I have one set in L.A. and one set in New York, because you don’t want to ever leave home without them.

I know you’re the queen of Halloween. Have you ever dressed up as a football player?

No, I’ve never been a football player. What I've learned as I've gotten older is that you don't have to pick a character; you can be five different characters altogether. I have so many costumes. I don't want to just be one. So I will put on a pink beehive, and I'll mix it with a vampire or witch or whatever.

Have you ever done a horror movie?

I have never done a full-out horror movie, actually. Some people could say The Silence of the Lambs is a full-on horror movie. I think it's more psychological drama or a thriller. I love horror that’s meaningful, with sociopolitical themes, but that also scares you—Get Out, Nope. I think Hereditary is my favorite scary movie of all time.

Are you happiest on a movie set?

I like my creative cycle: I like living my life—taking out the garbage and that kind of stuff. Then I start to get itchy, and I become obsessed with making a film. That’s when I get up at three in the morning because I have to be at work at four. Then I get resentful that all my time has been taken by the film. By the time I get to the wrap party, I just want the thrill of ordinary life again. And then I get bored again.

Do you have any scars?

Yes, I was mauled by a lion. I was 8 and a half or 9 years old, and the lion picked me up, shook me around, moved me horizontally, and then dropped me. So I had two perfect puncture wounds on one side and then two perfect punctures on the other hip. It was during a movie, but it was after the shot was over. I was in shock, so I don’t really remember that much. But when the lion picked me up, I saw the whole camera crew run. Then the trainer said, “Drop it,” and the lion dropped me out of his mouth. After I got out of the hospital, I went back and worked again with the lion. I think that was the scariest thing that has happened to me when I was making a movie.

Which film makes you cry?

I don’t cry in life. Where I cry is in the movie theater. I’m a little ashamed to say that when I saw Ghost, I couldn’t stop crying. But, yes, my place to cry is in the dark.

Style Director: Allia Alliata di Montereale. Codirector: Frank Lebon. Director of photography: André Chemetoff. Hair by Jawara for L’Oréal Professional at Art Partner; makeup by Lauren Parsons for Sisley Paris at Art Partner; manicure by Jolene Brodeur for Dazzle Dry at the Wall Group. Set design by David White at Streeters.