Oscar-winning icon Jodie Foster is revealing her must-see films list…and let’s just say, it’s a little surprising.
The “Nyad” star said while in conversation with “Past Lives” actress Greta Lee for Interview magazine that she has two films she recommends everyone should watch. To note, Lee also appeared in Foster’s “Money Monster.”
Lee asked Foster, “What’s one movie you think everyone should see at least once?” to which Foster replied, “Well, ‘Everything Everywhere All at Once.’ Oh, and this is probably number one — the puppet movie ‘Team America: World Police.’”
“Team America: World Police” was a 2004 political satire film directed by “South Park” creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone. The film centered around an “Avengers” style group of counterterrorist police officers deemed Team America. The force accidentally destroys a slew of international landmarks while trying to take down real-life North Korean leader Kim Jong Il.
Actors George Clooney, Alec Baldwin, Samuel L. Jackson, Sean Penn, Ethan Hawke, and Susan Sarandon were parodied by directors Parker and Stone, who voice acted in the film alongside Kristen Miller, Masasa Moyo, Daran Norris, and Phil Hendrie. “Team America” was later banned and caused a controversial backlash.
“A sense of humor is my touchstone, and I have a very dumb sense of humor,” Foster told Interview magazine. “Sometimes with actors, even in the most dramatic circumstances, I like to laugh with them. I like to laugh about really intense things.”
She later added to actress Lee for acting tips, “Get working on your ‘Team America’ monologues.”
Foster will appear in “True Detective” Season 4 next, and is on the Oscars short list for a Best Supporting Actress nomination for her turn in “Nyad” based on the true story of swimmer Diana Nyad, played by Annette Bening. Foster portrays her best friend and coach.
Looking ahead, Foster has her sights set on returning to the director’s chair for indie films.
“In terms of directing, I don’t know how many more movies I have in me,” Foster said. “There’s something I’ve been working on, which I can’t talk about, but I’ve been working on it for 10 years. I try not to tell people about it because if it doesn’t get made, then I look like an idiot.”
She added, “There are two different sides of me, and the directing side is much truer to who I am. I have an opinion about everything. I’m very compartmentalized. I’m a future thinker and a big picture person. I like to organize. I like to make lists. I’m slightly hyperfocused and OCD. And all of those things aren’t really great for acting. I’ve had to learn how to sit on them. So it’s more comfortable for me to be a director, but obviously it’s harder for me to get movies off the ground, and it’s a longer process. So I think maybe if I have one regret in my career, it’s that I wasn’t able to make more movies as a director, but I’m really proud of the films that I made. They weren’t these gigantic hits, but they’re really personal stories that mean a lot to me.”
