Wes Anderson has worked with a whole slew of talented actors over the years: Edward Norton, Ralph Fiennes, Bill Murray, Michael Cera (finally) in his latest, “The Phonecian Scheme,” among others. But in a new interview with Collider, the filmmaker revealed there’s one actress he’s tried to reel in to star in several of his movies over the year to no avail. She’s Anderson’s white whale, if you will.
So, any guesses as to who it may be? Anderson was initially sheepish to reveal the name, but eventually did. “Over the years, I had so many movies that I tried to get Jodie Foster to be in,” said the director. “It used to be every movie, we went to Jodie Foster for a part. And I think I did it three movies in a row, maybe four. And I met her, and I liked her. And I thought it was going to get her. And I think she’s just great, Jodie Foster.”
But Foster never acquiesced to a role in an Anderson project, although he hopes he may one day get her to sign on. “I think sometimes somebody has an idea of the kind of work they want to do at that time in his or her life, and we weren’t right,” Anderson speculated about why Foster turned him down so many times. He shouldn’t take it, however; Foster has a reputation for being very choosy about what roles she takes on, and she may simply feel her and Anderson aren’t compatible as creators. And it’s not like Anderson has had trouble casting other actresses for roles he wanted Foster for.
But Anderson wouldn’t reveal the films or the parts he asked Foster to be in. “Well, I don’t like to say, because if I say, then you say, ‘Oh, you mean so-and-so, who’s in the movie, wasn’t your first choice.’ And so I don’t want that to be a thing,” he continued. “She would have been great. But anyway, she’s pretty amazing, Jodie Foster.”
“The Phoenician Scheme” is in theaters now. And as for Foster? She recently starred in the French black comedy mystery “A Private Life,” which had its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival; Anderson was there too with his latest. Expect “A Private Life” to hit US theaters in late 2025 or early 2026.
