Gotham Awards 2023: De Niro, Upset Trump Comments Were Cut From His Speech, Lashes Out at the Former President (Not for the First Time)

Killers of the Flower Moon star Robert De Niro was confused when he took the stage at the Gotham Awards in New York City Monday night.

The Oscar-winning actor was on hand to introduce the Historical Icon and Creator Tribute award for Scorsese’s Apple film, which also stars DiCaprio and Lily Gladstone.

When De Niro began reading his prepared remarks for the introduction of the award, he noticed his comments were edited. A video aired of the iconic director and Osage chief Geoffrey Standing Bear discussing the film.

Then, De Niro insisted on reading the original speech he was going to give, which featured specific, political comments, including ones about Donald Trump.

 

“History isn’t history anymore. Truth isn’t truth, and even facts are being replaced by alternative facts and driven by conspiracy theories and ugliness,” De Niro said onstage. “In Florida, young students are taught that slaves developed skills that could be applied for their personal benefit. The entertainment industry isn’t immune to this festering disease. The Duke, John Wayne, famously said of Native Americans, ‘I don’t feel we did wrong in taking this great country away from them. There were great numbers of people who needed new land, and the Indians were selfishly trying to keep it for themselves.’”

He continued, “Lying has become just another tool in the charlatan’s arsenal. The former president lied to us more than 30,000 times during his four years in office, and he’s keeping up the pace with his current campaign of retribution. With all of his lies, he can’t hide his soul. He attacks the weak, destroys the gifts of nature and shows his disrespect for example using Pocahontas as a slur,” referencing Trump’s popular nickname for Senator Elizabeth Warren.

The actor then informed the audience that this is where his speech resumed and blamed seemingly blamed Killers studio Apple for cutting part of his speech.

“I’m gonna say these things, but to Apple and thank them and all that, Gothams, blah, blah, blah, Apple,” De Niro said. “But I don’t feel like thanking them at all after what they did. How dare they do that, actually?”

De Niro also famously shouted “Fuck Trump” as he took the stage at the 2018 Tony Awards.