Jodie Foster, 61, claims costar Robert De Niro and director Martin Scorsese were 'scared' of her when she was 12 in Taxi Driver: 'I was in my hot pants'

Jodie Foster has claimed that Martin Scorsese and Robert De Niro were 'scared' of her when she was 12 years old.

The 61-year-old actress — who started her career when she was just three years old — recalled how the legendary director, 81, and his frequent collaborator, 80, were intimidated by her and didn't know “what to do with it.” her when they worked together on the 1976 film Taxi Driver.

She said W magazine: 'I first worked with Martin Scorsese when I was about ten years old, on Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore.

'By the time I was twelve, I had made many more films than De Niro or Scorsese. They were absolutely afraid of me: “What should we do with this 12-year-old?” said the Contact star – who is no longer afraid of what anyone thinks.

“I wore my hot pants and corks, or whatever those platform shoes were called.”

The 61-year-old actress — who started her career when she was just three years old — recalled how the legendary director, 81, and his frequent collaborator, 80, were intimidated by her and didn't know “what to do with it.” her when they worked together on Taxi Driver

The True Detective actress struggled with work in her late teens and early 20s, but continued to take jobs because her mother warned her that her career would be “over” by the time she turned 40.

She said: 'The biggest transition was going from a young person to university and then to an adult actor.

'The work I did between the ages of 16 and 22 is the most difficult place.

“But my mother kept telling me, 'By the time you're forty, you'll never work again, so you have to work as much as you can now, because by the time you're forty, you're over.' “'

Although her fifties were a 'tough' time in her career, Jodie couldn't be happier with the way things are for her now.

She explained, “Now I've never been so busy. The 1950s are uncomfortable, especially for an actress. People don't know what to do with you, and you don't know what to do with you.

“You are completely confused about what your relevance is in the world. You keep trying to compete with your past and who you used to be.

'And suddenly, when you're sixty, the perfect thing happens: at sixty you suddenly realize that you no longer care about the things you cared about in your fifties.

“You can support other people because you know it's not your time. There's something about being the sage in the room that makes it so much more fun.”

She told W magazine: 'I first worked with Martin Scorsese when I was about ten, on Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore. By the time I was twelve, I had made many more films than De Niro or Scorsese.

She added: “They were absolutely scared of me: 'What do we do with this 12-year-old?' said the Contact star – who is no longer afraid of what anyone thinks. “I had on my hot pants and corks, or whatever those platform shoes were called.”

Here all three can be seen many years later, in 1991, at an awards ceremony

Robert De Niro and Jodie Foster pose with (top row) Michael Phillips, Cybill Shepherd, Scorsese, Paul Schrader and Harvey Keitel during the 40th anniversary screening of Taxi Driver during the 2016 Tribeca Film Festival

The Oscar winner is currently appearing as Bonnie Stoll, the best friend, former lover and coach of swimmer Diana Nyad in Nyad, and it's a role she jumped into.

“I knew Bonnie and Diana for years, running into them at Christmas parties and barbecues, and I just loved them,” she told the outlet.

'I found them quirky and interesting. And then Diana's astonishing feat happened: swimming 110 miles from Cuba to Florida. When they approached me with the script, I couldn't resist.'

Jodie has been nominated for a Golden Globe and Critics Choice Award for her role in Nyad.