Jodie Foster Reveals Why She Turned Down The Role Of Princess Leia In Star Wars

Since making her breakthrough in the 1976 film Taxi Driver, Jodie Foster has been quite selective about the roles she takes on. However, this has changed significantly over the past few months, as she starred in the highly anticipated film Nyad and also made a strong debut in 2024 with True Detective: Night Country. It is a well-known fact that she came close to being chosen for the Princess Leia role in the original Star Wars. In a recent interview, the actress reveals the reason behind her eventual departure from the role.

Why did Jodie Foster reject Star Wars? 

During her appearance on NBC’s Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Foster revealed why she had to turn down the role of Princess Leia in the original Star Wars movie. The actress said, “They were going for a younger Princess Leia but I had a conflict. I was doing a Disney movie and I just didn’t want to pull out of the Disney movie because I was already under contract.”

Foster's casting would have most likely drastically changed the part. Foster would have only been 13 or 14 years old when the original Star Wars film was being made, and 15 when it came out in 1977. Eventually, Carrie Fisher, who was 19 at the time of filming, ended up playing the part.

The actress continued, “And they did an amazing job. I don’t know how good I would have been. I might have had different hair. I might have gone with a pineapple” (referring to the character’s famous Danish pastry hairstyle).

Although the former child star refrained from revealing the specific Disney film she was working on, Foster's film Freaky Friday released in 1976—a year before the success of Star Wars. Fisher starred in four more Star Wars movies after that including Empire Strikes Back, Return of the Jedi, The Force Awakens, and The Last Jedi. She died before she could film her scenes for The Rise of Skywalker, but Leia was included in the movie using previously unreleased footage from the set of The Last Jedi.

Jodie Foster’s Oscar wins 

Even though she was unable to make an appearance in Star Wars, Foster went on to have a very successful career. The actress portrayed Clarice Sterling in the film Silence of the Lambs, a young FBI agent-in-training who goes to Dr. Hannibal Lecter for case advice. 

She played Sarah Tobias in The Accused, a waitress who becomes the victim of a horrific crime that is the main focus of the movie. She won Academy Awards in Best Actress category for both of these roles.