John Hinckley Jr shares message for Jodie Foster 45 years after trying to kill Reagan to impress her
John Hicnkley Jr and Jodie Foster (Getty Images)
John Hinckley Jr, the man who attempted to assassinate US president Ronald Reagan in 1981 in a bid to impress actress Jodie Foster, has shared a new message for her more than four decades on.
Speaking on the Mark Joseph Show, as reported by Entertainment Weekly, Hinckley said he wished the Silence of the Lambs star well. “I just wish Jodie Foster well, you know. I don’t really see her movies, but I wish her well, and I know she’s doing quite well,” he said. “I hope she has a good life.”
On 30 March 1981, Hinckley opened fire on Reagan outside a Washington DC hotel, injuring several people, including the president, who was struck by a ricocheting bullet.
He was found not guilty on all charges by reason of insanity, and was released from institutional care in 2016, with all restrictions lifted in 2022.
Hinckley had developed a fixation on Foster after watching her in Taxi Driver, and stalked her while she was a student at Yale, years before the shooting.
He was 25 at the time; Foster was 18 and already an established actress.
He described his motivation as “delusional”, telling the host he had believed the attack would lead to “a union with Jodie Foster”.
Foster, who has spoken only rarely about the ordeal over the years, came out publicly in 2013 and is widely regarded as a queer icon.
Share your thoughts! Let us know in the comments below, and remember to keep the conversation respectful.
