RONALD REAGAN’s attempted assassin believes he caused JODIE FOSTER’s attraction to women.

Friday, January 16, 2026 - John Hinckley Jr., the man who attempted to ass@ssinate former U.S. President Ronald Reagan in 1981, has claimed he believes he is responsible for actress Jodie Foster’s attraction to women.

Hinckley told TMZ that he has a personal theory suggesting Foster became gay as a result of trauma linked to his failed ass@ssination attempt and the public fascination he directed toward her at the time. He argued that Foster, who dated men in the early 1980s, only publicly identified as gay years later. Foster came out during the 2013 Golden Globes.

Hinckley said this is the first time he has publicly stated this theory as he promotes his new memoir, John Hinckley Jr.: Who I Really Am.

He recounted becoming obsessed with Foster after watching her performance in Taxi Driver in 1976. While Foster was attending Yale University, Hinckley said he obtained her dorm contact information, called her, and left notes and poems. He said he never asked her out because she did not appear interested.

Hinckley told TMZ that, during that period, he was depressed, delusional, and convinced that he could “impress” Foster by attempting to k!ll the president. Drawing parallels to Taxi Driver, he said he envisioned himself as Travis Bickle, the film’s protagonist, who plots political ass@ssination in a misguided attempt to win affection.

In March 1981, Hinckley traveled by bus from Los Angeles to Washington, D.C., sold two guns to pay for the trip, and went to the Hilton Hotel armed with a .22 caliber revolver as Reagan delivered a speech. When Reagan exited the hotel, Hinckley fired six shots in rapid succession, wounding Reagan, police officer Thomas Delahanty, Secret Service agent Tim McCarthy, and White House Press Secretary James Brady.

Hinckley said he initially expected to be k!lled by Secret Service agents, but instead was subdued by bystanders until law enforcement intervened. He was later found not guilty by reason of insanity and committed to a psychiatric institution for more than three decades. Hinckley maintains that the verdict was correct.

He also said he has been on antidepressants for many years and is currently voluntarily taking Zoloft and Risperdal for anxiety. Foster’s representatives declined to comment when contacted.