Robert De Niro Admits in Fiery Court Testimony He ‘Berated’ Ex-Assistant and Called Her Names

Robert De Niro testified in court that he “raised his voice” at his former assistant Graham Chase Robinson during her employment

Robert De Niro is back on the witness stand to give more explosive testimony in the civil trial involving his former assistant Graham Chase Robinson.

In federal court in New York on Tuesday, the 80-year-old actor raised his voice repeatedly as he testified on the second day of a trial to settle lawsuits between De Niro’s company, Canal Productions, and his former assistant.

When asked by Robinson’s attorney, Andrew Macurdy, whether De Niro had called her names during her 11 years with the company, Killers of the Flower Moon the star admitted that he did.

“Yeah, well, I scolded her,” the Oscar winner testified in response to questions about when Robinson didn’t wake him up in time for an important meeting. He then agreed that he may have called her “uptight”, “sharp” and a “j——g spoiled brat”.

“I raised my voice,” De Niro said. “I’m not shouting. You want to dispute that? That’s one thing I don’t do.”

Leonardo DiCaprio, Martin Scorsese, Tiffany Chen and more gathered to celebrate Robert De Niro’s 80th birthday

Gareth Cattermole/Getty

In 2019, after Robinson left her position as vice president of production and finance at Canal Productions, the company filed a $6 million lawsuit against her. They alleged she binge-watched Netflix shows while on the job, charged personal meals and groceries to a company credit card, and improperly used “her employer’s funds for her personal benefit,” including De Niro’s frequent flyer miles.

In her $12 million counterclaim, Robinson alleged that De Niro and Canal Productions violated the New York City Human Rights Act, alleging that the actor made sexist comments to her, assigned her “stereotypical female job duties that were inconsistent with her job title,” and paid her less than male employee Dan Harvey.

Robert De Niro October 30.

David Dee Delgado/Getty

During his testimony, De Niro, who hired Harvey as his personal trainer during the films dating back to 1991, addressed the latter point by asking, “What does Dan Harvey have to do with her?”

He continued: “God knows why she felt she should do the same [salary]. Dan Harvey has been here for 40 years. He was with me, he left his family, he never complained. Is she jealous of him?”

On the alleged gender pay gap, he added: “Give me some of that nonsense… For her to use that is so ridiculous.”

Robert De Niro claims a former employee threatened to write a damaging memoir about the actor

Robert De Niro in 2023.

TheImageDirect

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

When asked about instances when, during her employment, De Niro allegedly asked Robinson to scratch his itchy back, Mad bull the actor exclaimed: “Every little thing he tries to talk me into is nonsense! Shame on you, Chase Robinson.” He then apologized for the outburst.

The trial in New York will continue to feature email and text exchanges between De Niro and his girlfriend, Tiffany Chen. The two had a daughter together in May – Gia Virginia Chen De Niro, his seventh child.

In earlier testimony, De Niro claimed that Chen “may have said” disrespectful things about Robinson. “But she was angry because Robinson treated her with disrespect. Period. And that is unacceptable.”

Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education