Iris Steensma

**Iris Steensma** is the titular deuteragonist of Martin Scorsese's 1976 psychological crime thriller, *Taxi Driver.* She is a 12-year-old prostitute, who has been manipulated by pimp, Charles "Sport" Rain, who is also being rescued by vigilante, Travis Bickle.

She was portrayed by Jodie Foster, who also played Audrey in *Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore.*

## Biography

### Early life

Iris Steensma was born in 1964 to Burt and Ivy Steensma in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Not much is known about Iris' early life, despite the fact that she lived in a house on 301 Beech Street. According to Iris, she ran away due to her parents hating her, although this could have been just a response due to her teenage angst, as the letter her father wrote about Iris in a very loving way.

### 1976

Some time in 1976, at the age of 12, Iris ran away from her home to New York City, where she was encountered by pimp and drug dealer, Charles Rain, aka "Matthew Higgins", aka "Sport". With the help of Sport's manipulation, Sport convinced Iris to become a child prostitute, which was most likely desired by Iris, due to her teenage angst.

Late one night, Iris enters a taxicab and begs the driver to drive off. Instead the driver, wannabe vigilante, Travis Bickle, doesn't drive off, questioning Iris' actions. Soon after, Iris is pulled out by Sport, who bribes Travis with a crumpled up dollar bill. Iris eventually encounters Travis a second time. After Travis gets approval from Sport, Iris and Travis enter Sport's brothel. At first, Iris tries to prepare to have sex with Travis, before Travis pushes her aside and begins to explain his plan to save her.

The two then meet up at a diner, where Travis begins criticizing Iris' new lifestyle. During this conversation, Iris explains her backstory of why she ran away, as well as talking about her sex life. Travis dismisses this, begging her to go back home and to realize how evil and manipulative Sport really is. Iris starts to agree with Travis, until Sport manipulates and molests her after he conversation with Travis.

A couple days later, while Iris is having sex with one of Sport's associates and Brooklyn mobster, Anthony Sciloso, she and Sciloso overhear gunshots and the sounds of the brothel bouncer screaming. Sciloso exits the room, where he immediately falls back into the room, now dead. The murderer is revealed to be Travis, who is now a full-time vigilante, The screaming bouncer enters the room, where Travis then murders him, despite Iris begging him not to. Travis, seriously injured, attempts suicide but instead falls into a coma, next to a now crying Iris.

After Travis wakes up from his coma, Iris' father, Burt sends him a letter, explaining that Iris is now back in her home in Pittsburgh and attending school. According to Burt, Iris is now doing much better in school, although it is heavily implied that Iris is now traumatized with her witnessing Travis' murders.

## Trivia

* John Hinckley Jr.'s obsession with Jodie Foster's Iris in the film, drove him to nearly assassinate President Ronald Reagan, as he believed that if he murdered Reagan, Jodie Foster would fall in love with him.
* Iris' address in the film, is revealed to be 301 Beech Street in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania through Burt's letter. In reality, this address is actually real, although it is unknown whether this was done on purpose or not.