'' Taxi Driver '' formed part of the delusional fantasy of John Hinckley Jr. that triggered his attempted assassination of President Ronald Reagan in 1981 , an act for which he was found not guilty by reason of insanity . Hinckley stated that his actions were an attempt to impress actress Jodie Foster , on whom Hinckley was fixated , by mimicking Travis 's mohawked appearance at the Palantine rally . His attorney concluded his defense by playing the movie for the jury . When Scorsese heard about Hinckley 's motivation behind his assassination attempt , he temporarily thought about quitting filmmaking as the association brought a negative perception of the film
attempted assassination
Attempted assassination of Ronald Reagan
Taxi Driver