Donald Trump trashes 'unwatchable' Robert De Niro in latest tirade

Donald Trump has slammed 'The Godfather' actor Robert De Niro for his speech at the Gotham Awards, calling him "unwatchable" and a "mess" after being accused of disseminating disinformation by the Oscar winner.

On November 27, De Niro stood on stage at the Italian restaurant Cipriani in New York to deliver the Gotham Historical Icon & Creator Tribute award to the actors of Martin Scorsese's Killers of the Flower Moon, which honours true storytelling and major moments in film.

The Western crime thriller stars De Niro, Lily Gladstone, Leonardo DiCaprio, Brendan Fraser, and Jesse Plemons depicting the killings of Osage Nation members in 1920s Oklahoma.

De Niro's address, on the other hand, featured a few jabs at the former president, with the 80-year-old actor accusing Trump of disseminating disinformation. On Monday, Newsweek reached out to Robert De Niro and Donald Trump for comment via email.

"History isn't history anymore. Truth is not truth," De Niro told the audience. "Even facts are being replaced by 'alternative facts'."

"Lying has become just another tool in the charlatans' arsenal," the star added.

De Niro said that Trump "lied to us more than 30,000 times during his four years in office."

"He's keeping up the pace in his current campaign of retribution," the actor added. "But, with all his lies, he can't hide his soul."

DeNiro recalled Trump referring to Elizabeth Warren as "Pocahontas" during a White House ceremony honouring Native Americans in 2017. 

Throughout his fight with the Massachusetts senator, who claims Native American ancestry, the business magnate has used the term multiple times.

"He attacks the weak, destroys the gifts of nature, and shows disrespect. For example, by using 'Pocahontas' as a slur,'" De Niro said.

On Sunday, Trump criticised De Niro's acting ability and a recent court action brought by his former aide Graham Chase Robinson on Truth Social, the social network he founded after being banned from Twitter.

On November 10, the Manhattan Federal Court ruled De Niro's production firm, Canal Productions, guilty of gender discrimination and retaliation, and Robinson was given $1.264 million in damages.

"Robert De Niro, whose acting talents have greatly diminished, with his reputation now shot, must even use a teleprompter for his foul and disgusting language," Trump wrote.

"So disrespectful to our Country. He has become unwatchable both in his movies and with the FOOLS that destroyed the Academy Awards, bringing them from one of the top shows in the Country to a Low Rated afterthought.

"De Niro should focus on his life, which is a mess, rather than the lives of others. He has become a total loser, as the World watches, waits, and laughs!" Trump added.

De Niro has never been a fan of former President Barack Obama. The Oscar winner called Trump "evil" in a statement read at The New Republic's Stop Trump Summit in New York in October. De Niro's message was given in his stead by ex-Trump administration staffer Miles Taylor, who was unable to attend the ceremony after testing positive for COVID-19.

De Niro made a veiled joke at Trump on stage at the Screen Actors Guild Awards in 2020. During his acceptance speech for the Lifetime Achievement Award, the Irishman actor appeared to criticise the Trump administration for its "blatant abuse of power."

"There's right and there's wrong. There's common sense and there's abuse of power," De Niro said.

"As a citizen, I have as much right as anybody—an actor, an athlete, a musician, anybody else—to voice my opinion. And if I have a bigger voice because of my situation, I'm going to use it whenever I see a blatant abuse of power," De Niro added.

In 2016, the actor was also one of the well-known faces to feature in an anti-Trump campaign film. In a video released prior to the presidential election, De Niro called the politician a "dog" and a "b******* artist," telling viewers he'd like to "punch him in the face."