The Wild Story Behind Jodie Foster Being Mauled By A Lion On Set: ‘Scariest Thing That Has Happened To Me’

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Jodie Foster is a highly accomplished actress and filmmaker with numerous awards, but her journey hasn’t been without hardship. Beyond emotional challenges, she also bears physical scars from a childhood encounter – she was actually attacked by a lion.

Jodie Foster recently shared a story with W Magazine about an incident that happened when she was a child actor on the set of the Disney film Napoleon and Samantha. She was asked if she had any scars, and recounted being grabbed by a lion during filming – a story she’s told before.

When I was about eight or nine years old, a lion attacked me. It picked me up and shook me violently before dropping me. I had puncture wounds on both sides of my hip, but over time, as I grew, the scars stretched and changed, so I’m not even sure where they are now. This happened after we’d finished filming a shot – it wasn’t caught on camera.

The show Napoleon and Samantha centers around a boy named Napoleon (Johnny Whitaker) and his grandfather, who take in an elderly lion originally owned by a circus clown. When Napoleon’s grandfather dies, he runs away with the lion, and his friend Samantha (Foster) joins him on his journey.

This film marked Jodie Foster’s first leading role in a movie, and it started a successful working relationship with Disney. She went on to star in films like the original Freaky Friday and Candleshoe. Interestingly, because she was filming Candleshoe, Foster wasn’t available to play Princess Leia in Star Wars.

Being grabbed by a lion’s jaws is definitely one of the scariest experiences imaginable. Perhaps it’s a good thing Disney now uses computer-generated lions in its films. Thankfully, while Foster remembers the incident, she says many details are unclear because she went into shock. However, she does recall one detail that’s actually quite funny, though it probably didn’t feel that way at the time. Foster went on to explain:

I was so shocked, I barely remember what happened. The lion lifted me up, moved me to the side, and shook me vigorously. As he turned me around towards the camera crew, I saw everyone run away in fear.

Reports indicate the lion that attacked Foster wasn’t the primary animal used in the movie, but a substitute. Despite the incident, Foster remarkably continued working with the same lion, demonstrating impressive dedication early in her career. She explained:

The trainer told the lion to ‘drop it,’ and thankfully, he released me from his mouth. That was definitely the most frightening experience I’ve had on a movie set. Surprisingly, after recovering in the hospital, I went back to work with that same lion!

You won’t be able to stream Napoleon & Samantha on Disney+ right now. It’s one of many classic Disney movies that aren’t currently available on the service.

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2026-01-08 02:38