‘Probably the scariest thing that ever happened to me’: Jodie Foster recalls how a lion almost mauled her

Over the years, famed actress Jodie Foster has gone through a lot of different and unique experiences as a child artist. In one of her latest appearances, the star delved into how it was to film with an actual lion right by her side for ‘Napoleon and Samantha’ in the 1970s.

Jodie Foster opens up about filming with a lion on set

While talking to W Magazine recently, Foster looked back at some of her hardest moments on set. Recalling her life as a child, the actress revealed that, during one of her early projects in the industry, she had to film alongside a lion.

After the shoot, the lion actually mauled her and threw her around, which was one of the most terrifying experiences of her life.

Foster provided more details about the matter, citing that, “I was mauled by a lion when I was eight-and-a-half or nine. The lion picked me up, shook me around, moved me horizontally, and then dropped me. I had two perfect punctures on one side and then two perfect punctures on the other, on my hip. But as the years have gone on and we get bigger, you know, who even knows where they are anymore. They kind of just move around.”

The moment was never filmed, Jodie Foster says

The actress revealed that thankfully, none of it was ever filmed as the cameras had already stopped rolling by the time the lion did anything to her. ‘The Silence of the Lambs’ actress shared that she does not remember much from the incident; however, she knows that she saw everyone running away from her. “I saw the whole camera crew run — except sideways. So, I saw them running sideways, taking all their equipment with them, just like, running away from me,” the actress quipped.

Foster concluded by adding that, “I think that was probably the scariest thing that ever happened to me when I was making a movie. I’m not sure I had time for fear, honestly.”

Jodie Foster was last seen in ' A Private Life', a French black thriller-comedy film which was released last year. She starred in the film along with Daniel Auteuil, Virginie Efira, Mathieu Amalric, Vincent Lacoste, and Luana Bajrami. The film had its first world premiere at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival.Get the latest entertainment updates from the Times of India, along with the latest Hindi movies, upcoming Hindi movies in 2026 , and Telugu movies.”