{"id":41499,"date":"2026-08-12T19:45:51","date_gmt":"2026-08-12T14:45:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=41499"},"modified":"2026-08-12T19:45:51","modified_gmt":"2026-08-12T14:45:51","slug":"john-hinckley-jr-sends-message-to-jodie-foster-45-years-after-shooting-ronald-reagan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=41499","title":{"rendered":"John Hinckley Jr. sends message to Jodie Foster 45 years after shooting Ronald Reagan"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><script>\r\n  atOptions = {\r\n    'key' : '644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6',\r\n    'format' : 'iframe',\r\n    'height' : 90,\r\n    'width' : 728,\r\n    'params' : {}\r\n  };\r\n<\/script>\r\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.highperformanceformat.com\/644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<br \/><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/pagesix.com\/wp-content%2Fuploads%2Fsites%2F3%2F2026%2F08%2F137175050.jpg?quality%3D90%26strip%3Dall\" \/><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>John Hinckley Jr. sent well wishes to Jodie Foster 45 years after <a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/article\/ronald-reagan-shot-john-hinckley-jr-assassination-attempt\/\">shooting President Ronald Reagan to impress the actress.<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u201cI just wish Jodie Foster well, you know,\u201d\u00a0Hinckley Jr., 71, <a href=\"https:\/\/ew.com\/john-hinckley-jr-shares-a-message-for-jodie-foster-in-rare-interview-12053383\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">said in Entertainment Weekly\u2019s preview clip<\/a> of his interview on <a href=\"https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/the-mark-joseph-show\/id1827345687\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u201cThe Mark Joseph Show\u201d<\/a> airing Wednesday<\/p>\n<p>He added, \u201cI don\u2019t really see her movies, but I wish her well, and I know she\u2019s doing quite well. And that\u2019s all I can say is just, I wish Jodie well, and I hope she has a good life.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-full\"><figcaption>John Hinckley Jr. (seen above in 2023) shared a message for Jodie Foster 45 years after shooting Ronald Reagan to impress the actress. <span class=\"credit\">TNS<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-full\"><figcaption>Hinckley said, \u201cI just wish Jodie Foster well, you know\u201d (Foster is seen above at the 2025 New York Film Festival). <span class=\"credit\">Getty Images for FLC<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<aside class=\"single__inline-module aligncenter wp-block-nypost-editor-primary-tag\">\n<\/aside>\n<p>Page Six has reached out to Foster\u2019s rep for comment.<\/p>\n<p>On March 30, 1981, Hinckley Jr. tried to assassinate Reagan as the then-president left the Hilton Hotel in Washington DC, as a way of impressing Foster after becoming obsessed with her from watching \u201cTaxi Driver.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Reagan suffered serious injuries during the assassination attempt, including a punctured lung and a broken rib. The .22 caliber bullet had narrowly missed his heart.<\/p>\n<p>The attack injured three others, including former White House press secretary James Brady, who became permanently paralyzed. <a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2014\/08\/04\/former-white-house-press-secretary-james-brady-dies-at-73\/\">He later died in 2014.<\/a><\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-full\"><figcaption>Hinckley Jr. shot Reagan on March 30, 1981 when the president let the Hilton Hotel in Washington, DC. <span class=\"credit\">Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-full\"><figcaption>Reagan was injured in the shooting but survived, while press secretary James Brady (seen above) was permanently paralyzed.  <span class=\"credit\">Circa Images\/Glasshouse Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Hinckley Jr. was found not guilty by reason of insanity in 1982 and spent over 34 years committed at St. Elizabeth\u2019s Hospital. He was released in 2022.<\/p>\n<p>On the podcast, Hinckley Jr. revealed to Joseph \u2014 who directed the <a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2025\/11\/03\/us-news\/reagan-biopic-wins-best-western-film-drama\/\">2024 film \u201cReagan\u201d <\/a>starring Dennis Quaid as the late president \u2014 what his goal for the shooting was.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI wanted to have a union with Jodie Foster and live the rest of my life with her and all these things that, of course, were delusional,\u201d he explained. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cBut I was believing those things at the time, so the best outcome would have been a union with Jodie Foster.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-full\"><figcaption>Hinckley Jr. said he hopes Foster (seen above in 2025) \u201chas a good life.\u201d <span class=\"credit\">Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-full\"><figcaption>Hinckley Jr. (whose mugshot is seen above) explained his goal for the shooting was to get married to Foster. <span class=\"credit\">Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-full\"><figcaption>Hinckley Jr. also said he figured he\u2019d go to jail, but hoped Foster would still end up with him (Reagan is pictured above). <span class=\"credit\">CONSOLIDATED NEWS PICTURES\/AFP via Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<div class=\"single__inline-module inline-module inline-module--newsletter aligncenter inline-module--nypostbusinessunit aligncenter wp-block-nypost-editor-newsletter\" data-source-unit=\"Inline Newsletter Module Page Six Daily\">\n<div class=\"inline-module__inner\">\n<div class=\"inline-module__title-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"inline-module__unsubmitted-title-wrapper\">\n<h3 class=\"inline-module__title headline headline--combo-sm-md\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tWant more celebrity and pop culture news?\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/h3>\n<p class=\"inline-module__cta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tStart your day with Page Six Daily.\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><h3 class=\"inline-module__title headline headline--combo-sm-md\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\tThanks for signing up!\t\t\t\t\t<\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>After Joseph noted that <a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2025\/10\/20\/us-news\/beatles-assassin-mark-david-chapman-killed-john-lennon-to-be-a-somebody-but-officials-dont-buy-his-message-to-fans-docs\/\">Mark David Chapman went to jail for fatally shooting John Lennon<\/a> in 1980, Hinckley Jr. explained that while he figured he\u2019d be locked up, he hoped he\u2019d still end up with Foster.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI thought she would, you know, after things settled down, join me wherever I was,\u201d he shared. \u201cI wasn\u2019t sure if I was gonna be in jail or the hospital or what after things settled down. I had this notion that she was gonna join me wherever I was.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Foster, now 63,<a href=\"https:\/\/people.com\/jodie-foster-recalls-man-brought-gun-her-college-play-after-john-hinckley-jr-attempt-8667620?_gl=1*1f3ud89*_ga*MTU4NDkzOTkyMy4xNzE0NjU1ODUy*_ga_DK3GDWHWJH*czE3ODY1Mzk3OTkkbzkyOCRnMSR0MTc4NjU0MjUwNyRqMjIkbDAkaDAkZDB1c1Q3ejB2clQxTmVvQ1RnT1RWU2pYeHJvWC1rV053MWc.\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"> told People in 2024<\/a> how the assassination attempt on Reagan impacted her life.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-full\"><figcaption>Foster (seen here) has opened up about how the shooting has impacted her life. <span class=\"credit\">Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-full\"><figcaption>Hinckley Jr. (seen here) spent over 34 years committed at  St. Elizabeth\u2019s Hospital before he was released in 2022. <span class=\"credit\">Bettmann Archive<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cThe world fell apart, there were Secret Service people everywhere, I had bodyguards, and I had to be taken to a safe house,\u201d she recalled. <\/p>\n<p>The \u201cSilence of the Lambs\u201d actress also revealed that while performing in a play shortly after the shooting, a guy sitting in the front row brought a gun to the show.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt was a traumatic moment,\u201d she said, \u201cand I\u2019ve never admitted that maybe that has something to do with how I never wanted to do a play again. It was all part of that.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<script async=\"async\" data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/pl30214220.effectivecpmnetwork.com\/9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<div id=\"container-9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\"><\/div>\r\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>John Hinckley Jr. sent well wishes to Jodie Foster 45 years after shooting President Ronald Reagan to impress the actress. \u201cI just wish Jodie Foster well, you know,\u201d\u00a0Hinckley Jr., 71, said in Entertainment Weekly\u2019s preview clip of his interview on \u201cThe Mark Joseph Show\u201d airing Wednesday He added, \u201cI don\u2019t really see her movies, but&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":41500,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/pagesix.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/08\/137175050.jpg?quality=75&strip=all&w=1200","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-41499","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-celebrity-gossip"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41499","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=41499"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41499\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/41500"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=41499"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=41499"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=41499"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}