Camille Naredo

US actor Robert De Niro attends a "Rendez-Vous With Robert De Niro" at the 78th edition of the Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, southern France, on May 14, 2025. Miguel Medina, AFP

US actor Robert De Niro attends a "Rendez-Vous With Robert De Niro" at the 78th edition of the Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, southern France, on May 14, 2025. (Photo by Miguel MEDINA / AFP)

Article (news)

Cannes

Agence France-Presse

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1747241575234AFP__20250514__46ND4TJ__v2__Preview__TopshotFranceFilmFestivalCannes.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" alt="US actor Robert De Niro attends a &quot;Rendez-Vous With Robert De Niro&quot; at the 78th edition of the Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, southern France, on May 14, 2025. Miguel Medina, AFP"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">US actor Robert De Niro attends a &quot;Rendez-Vous With Robert De Niro&quot; at the 78th edition of the Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, southern France, on May 14, 2025. <em>Miguel Medina, AFP</em></span></span></span></div><p>CANNES, France -- Robert De Niro told AFP Wednesday that many in Hollywood share his views on US President Donald Trump -- whom he denounced at the Cannes film festival opening -- but the industry is worried about speaking out against him.</p><p>The 81-year-old, one of the most outspoken critics of the American leader, used his Tuesday evening speech to condemn him again, calling him a &quot;philistine&quot;.</p><p>&quot;They have big businesses, they have to worry about the wrath of Trump, and that&#x27;s where they have to make a decision: do I succumb to that or do I say no?&quot; he told AFP.</p><p>But he cited as an inspiration the example of some US universities and legal firms who have stood up to attempts from Trump&#x27;s administration to cow them.</p><p>&quot;It&#x27;s important, because other people pick that up, they see that they&#x27;re fighting, it gives them strength to fight, and they&#x27;re inspired by that,&quot; he added.</p><p>&quot;They say it is possible... that&#x27;s what America is about.&quot;</p><p>After accepting an honorary Palme d&#x27;Or on Tuesday evening for his contribution to cinema, the &quot;Taxi Driver&quot; star called for resistance against Trump&#x27;s agenda.</p><p>As well as calling the president a &quot;philistine&quot;, De Niro slammed his desire to implement 100-percent tariffs on films &quot;produced in foreign lands&quot;.</p><p>&quot;You can&#x27;t have apathy, you can&#x27;t have silence,&quot; De Niro said on Wednesday.</p><p>&quot;People have to speak up and they have to take chances and risk being harassed. You just can&#x27;t let the bully win, period.&quot;</p><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/world/2025/5/5/trump-says-ordering-100-percent-tariff-on-all-movies-produced-abroad-0916">READ: Trump says ordering &#x27;100 percent tariff&#x27; on all movies produced abroad</a></div><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/world/2025/5/6/hollywood-shocked-by-trumps-film-tariffs-announcement-1634">READ: Hollywood shocked by Trump&#x27;s film tariffs announcement</a></div><div><br/></div><div><strong>- Documentary film -</strong></div><p>De Niro also revealed Wednesday that he has been working on a new personal film project with New York-based French artist JR, best known for his huge photographic collages.</p><p>The film will be an exploration of De Niro&#x27;s family, particularly his father, a painter, and the actor has opened up his family archives including abundant family videos.</p><p>&quot;I don&#x27;t know where we&#x27;ll go,&quot; he told an audience during an interview with JR in Cannes. &quot;There&#x27;s no time limit, as far as I&#x27;m concerned.&quot;</p><p>The pair revealed some of the first images of their work, which include huge photos of De Niro&#x27;s father and a sequence in which De Niro can be seen lying on one of them while travelling on a barge in New York&#x27;s harbour.</p><p>It also features an appearance from Martin Scorsese, who directed De Niro in some of his best-known movies including &quot;Goodfellas&quot; and &quot;Raging Bull&quot;.</p><p>The film also sees De Niro reflect on his life and twilight years.</p><p>Asked if he was afraid of death, he replied: &quot;I don&#x27;t have a choice, so you might as well not be afraid of it.&quot;</p><div><strong>© Agence France-Presse</strong></div><div><br/></div><div><strong>RELATED VIDEO:</strong></div><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/G3Ds-OmbF-g?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><br/></div>

<p>Robert De Niro told AFP Wednesday that many in Hollywood share his views on US President Donald Trump -- whom he denounced at the Cannes film festival opening -- but the industry is worried about speaking out against him.</p>

Robert De Niro told AFP Wednesday that many in Hollywood share his views on US President Donald Trump -- whom he denounced at the Cannes film festival opening -- but the industry is worried about speaking out against him.

De Niro says Hollywood worried about 'wrath of Trump'

News

Entertainment

Lifestyle

Sports

Metro.Style

More

Traffic

Manila

Horoscope

Celebrities

De Niro says Hollywood worried about 'wrath of Trump'

Agence France-Presse,

François Becker

Published May 15, 2025 12:53 AM PHT

Read More:

Hollywood

Donald Trump

Cannes

Robert De Niro

Cannes film festival

Palme d'Or

ABS-CBN is the leading media and entertainment company in the Philippines, offering quality content across TV, radio, digital, and film. Committed to public service and promoting Filipino values, ABS-CBN continues to inspire and connect audiences worldwide.

Corporate

Investors

Governance

International Distribution

Corporate

Governance

Investors

International Distribution

NPC Seal of Registration

Privacy Policy

AI Policy

Terms of Service

Advertise with Us

© 2025 ABS-CBN Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

NPC Seal of Registration

Privacy Policy

Terms of Service

AI Policy

Advertise with Us

© 2025 ABS-CBN Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

NPC Seal of Registration

Privacy Policy

Terms of Service

AI Policy

Advertise with Us

© 2025 ABS-CBN Corporation. All Rights Reserved.