Jodie Foster Says ‘Justice By Twitter’ Isn’t The Answer For Hollywood’s Sexual Assault Problem

Jodie Foster has seen it all in the entertainment industry—the Academy Award-winning actress and director started in the business when she was just three years old—so she has some strong opinions regarding the current climate in Hollywood. In an interview with CBS News, Foster revealed that she thinks a time of “truth and reconciliation” is needed in the aftermath of the rampant sexual misconduct allegations that have dominated the movie and television industry. Foster pointed to the popular #MeToo movement on social media, saying that while it is important, she thinks it falls short in addressing the problem head-on.

“I’m not a sound bite person,” Foster said.

“I’m an hours person. I like to talk about things for hours. I’m not very good at 140 characters. I feel like it’s such a complicated issue, and it is a watershed moment.”

Foster went on to explain that this is “an amazing moment in time,” but that in order to do it justice there needs to be a bigger and much more complicated dialogue that goes beyond 140 characters on social media. That dialogue should include “the other side” as well—not just the accusers, many of whom make their announcements behind the keyboard on social media platforms.

“But this time is necessary,” Foster continued.

“And I’m really looking forward to what happens next, like all social justice movements. I think we’re all looking forward to how we can heal, and we want to hear voices. We want to hear the other side as well, in order to really change things. Justice by Twitter is not the right way to go.”

Jodie Foster on #MeToo: "Justice by Twitter is not the right way to go" https://t.co/yrcsF7VXUp pic.twitter.com/5OqfoZmFU9

— CBS News (@CBSNews) December 12, 2017

“We needed it after civil rights, we needed that after slavery,” Foster added. “I’m really looking forward to that. I’m happy to go to Davos and start that.”

Jodie Foster’s comments about a two-sided dialogue come in the wake of sexual harassment and assault allegation against some of the TV and movie industry’s biggest names, including movie mogul Harvey Weinstein, actor Kevin Spacey, and longtime Today show co-anchor Matt Lauer.

Jodie Foster started her career as a child model when she was just three years old. She went on to guest roles on 1970s TV shows like Mayberry R.F.D. and The Partridge Family before her breakout role as a teen prostitute in the 1976 movie Taxi Driver earned her an Academy Award nomination. Foster was even a teen idol in the 1970s, starring in Disney’s Freaky Friday and the teen drama Foxes before she put her acting career on the back burner to attend college at Yale. In 1988, Jodie Foster won an Academy Award for her role in the movie The Accused. More recently, Foster directed an episode of the Netflix science fiction anthology series, Black Mirror, titled “Arkangel.”