..Born Alicia Christian Foster on November 19, 1962 in Los Angeles, California to a Hollywood publicist and divorcee, Evelyn Foster, she is one among Evelyn's four children.Her very first exposure to the camera was in a Coppertone commercial. She had several commercial ad stints before she landed a role in several TV series beginning with "Mayberry RFD", "My Three Sons", "The Courtship of Eddie's Father"; guesting on "The Partridge Family" in the episode "Eleven Year Itch" in 1970, and in "Kung Fu". Her Mom ultimately got her a leading role job in the Disney feature film "Napoleon & Samantha" in 1972. There were various movies she appeared in after "Napoleon..." (see Jodie's Filmography for more details.) but that didn't inhibit her education though, she enrolled in Yale University and graduated cum laude in English Literature.
Her on-screen success never really glared until "The Accused" in 1988. She played Sarah Tobias superbly, a victim of gang rape where the assailants never quite got what they truly deserve from the court because of Sarah's credibility & "conspicuousness". This brought Jodie her first Academy Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role, and opened for her the usually unfriendly gates of fame. After "The Accused", came "Backtrack" from Vestron Pictures co-starring and directed by Hollywood badboy Dennis Hopper. Sad to say, but this film didn't live up to all our expectations, nonetheless, Jodie gave her best in this film and came out ahead. But that didn't stop Jodie from acquiring a lead part in Jonathan Demme's "The Silence Of The Lambs" in 1991. Where she won her second Academy Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role. Co-starring the brilliant Anthony Hopkins, which won the Best Actor in a Leading Role for that year, directed by Jonathan Demme (who also won Best Director). "Silence Of The Lambs" won the much coveted Best Picture of the Year, that finally cemented the Hollywood success of Jodie, Sir Anthony Hopkins, and Jonathan Demme. Personally, I've watched "The Silence Of The Lambs" 14 times (count 'em, katorse!) already. Yes, it's that good. Take it from a movie buff/expert like me, "The Silence Of The Lambs" really packs a wallop. It's the story of a rookie FBI agent trying to solve a serial-killing case by seeking the help of one demented, cannibalistic psychiatrist named Hannibal Lecter (played Nellmagnificently by Hopkins). This film left an impact on the general viewing public that made it a part of American culture, no, not serial-killing, but Moviemaking.
After that, she made her directorial debut on the film "Little Man Tate". A film about a struggling mother raising a gifted child. The film has its up- and downside, but this is where she showed the world that she's not only an accomplished actor, but also a capable director. Then came "Shadows & Fog" by Woody Allen, then the Mel Gibson vehicle "Maverick". "Maverick" revealed her comedic talent as well and sparked the infamous Mel-Jodie friendship. "Nell" came after that, where she played an autistic lass guided by the gentle hands of Liam Neeson. Some say that this role was tailor-made for the Oscars, which earned her third Best Actress Oscar nomination, but I say that every Jodie Foster film is tailor-made for any award.