Robert De Niro has admitted he asked his former assistant to scratch his back, during a series of testy exchanges in a New York Court. Photo / Getty Images
Robert De Niro has admitted he asked his former assistant to scratch his back, during a series of testy exchanges in a New York Court. Photo / Getty Images
An angry Robert De Niro has admitted he asked his former assistant to scratch his back, during a series of testy exchanges in a New York Court.
“You got me,” the 80-year-old shouted, after being questioned by lawyers. “Yeah, fine, I berated her.”
He also admitted he may have called Graham Chase Robinson, who worked for the actor and his company between 2008 and 2019, “petulant”, “snippy” and a “f***ing spoiled brat”.
The court heard he once asked Robinson to Uber him a martini from the upscale Nobu sushi lounge at 11pm.
And when asked about calling her twice while she was attending her grandmother’s funeral because he wanted her to buy his teen son a bus ticket, the actor replied, “So?”
De Niro is being asked for US$12 million (NZ$20.7 million) in damages, alleging gender discrimination, harassment and wage theft. Photo / AP
De Niro, famous for the dedication he puts into his roles, is being asked for US$12 million ($20.7m) in damages, alleging gender discrimination, harassment and wage theft.
The actor and his Canal Productions have countersued for US$6 million, accusing Robinson of spending company money on her own travel and food, and watching Netflix at work.
Both sides’ claims are being heard in a civil trial that is expected to last for two weeks.
Robinson has alleged that De Niro underpaid her, made “vulgar”, sexist comments and assigned her “stereotypically female” tasks while she worked as an executive assistant.
The two-time Oscar winner took the stand in a New York court on Monday, and became irate during hours of testimony, declaring: “This is all nonsense.”
Asked about claims that he required Robinson to be constantly available to do “anything and everything”, De Niro replied: “I asked her to do anything within reason. Within the confines of her job.”
“It’s not like I’m telling her to go out and scrape floors, mop floors so this is all nonsense,” he told the court.
Reporters in the courtroom described the actor as “grumpy” and “snapping” in his responses to lawyers’ questions.
Judge Lewis J Liman admonished De Niro and Robinson’s lawyer over their angry exchanges, reminding them not to raise their voices, according to reports.
De Niro said his assistant’s tasks involved organising travel and buying gifts for his family.
Robinson has claimed he also asked her to do things like mending clothing, doing laundry and scratching his back.
In opening arguments, a lawyer for Robinson said that when she suggested De Niro use a back scratcher, he replied: “I like the way you do it.”
‘Demeaning, controlling, abusive’
Richard Schoenstein, a lawyer for De Niro, said: “This is not the story of a helpless woman subject to discrimination by her employer.”
Schoenstein described Robinson as “condescending, demeaning, controlling, abusive” and said “she always played the victim”.
The questioning on Monday focused on the hours Robinson was required to keep.
De Niro said he would only call Robinson at “civilised” hours, but was asked about an occasion when he called her at 4am to help him get to hospital after an accident.
“That was one time when I cracked my back falling down the stairs,” the Hollywood star retorted, according to reporters in the court.
Robinson’s lawyers also alleged that De Niro’s girlfriend, Tiffany Chen, was jealous that the actor relied on her so much, claiming it led to her being stripped of duties in retaliation.
De Niro returned to the witness stand on Tuesday, when jurors were shown texts and emails between the actor and Chen demonstrating his fury over his former assistant’s lawsuit.
Robinson’s lawyers claimed that De Niro’s girlfriend, Tiffany Chen, was jealous that the actor relied on his former assistant so much. Photo / Youtube, CBS Mornings
Expletive-filled exchange
According to the Daily Mail, jurors were shown a message De Niro sent to Chen in July 2019, stating: “Can you believe Chase. Who the f*** does she think she is?”
Chen replied: “She thought she was your wife. I saw it from the beginning. I told you.”
Chen also emailed De Niro at 2am on March 28, 2019 warning her partner: “If you keep her you and I will have problems.”
She went on to describe Robinson as “f***ing rude” and a “dismissive b****”, according to the exchange shown to the jury.
She added: “You don’t want to see it because you’re too close to her.”
De Niro replied that he agreed, saying Robinson’s behaviour was “unacceptable”.
He told the court: “I knew what she [Robinson] was doing. She picked a time to say she was going to leave. It was not like I said you have to do this. We talked it over.
“I needed her. It wasn’t a carrot. It wasn’t being tough one minute and nice the next. A lot was going on and I needed her to help me.”
By the time she left De Niro’s employment in 2019, Robinson was working as vice-president of production and finance at Canal and being paid an annual salary of US$300,000.
The actor and Canal Productions have accused Robinson of improperly spending tens of thousands of dollars of company money on food, travel and other personal services and using the streaming platform Netflix at work.
De Niro has denied all of Ms Robinson’s allegations.
