Los seis hijos birraciales de Robert De Niro han cambiado su forma de ver el mundo

Ene 21, 2022

Los icónicos papeles de Robert De Niro en la serie de películas "El padrino", así como en el clásico de culto "Taxi Driver", siguen apareciendo en las referencias de la cultura pop incluso hoy en día. El talento inherente a la actuación de la estrella senior ha inspirado a generaciones de actores a salir de su zona de confort al actuar y seguir sus fuertes pasos. Aunque lleva unos años alejado de los focos, De Niro sigue siendo una personalidad magnánima en la industria del entretenimiento.

A lo largo de los años, De Niro se ha hecho un fuerte nombre en medio de los éxitos y fracasos de sus diversas relaciones. Al fin y al cabo, los matrimonios largos son poco frecuentes en Hollywood, ya que la fama es a veces demasiado dura para la vida privada de los famosos. A pesar de los retos que supuso cada uno de los tres matrimonios fallidos en la vida de De Niro, se ha esforzado por criar a sus seis hijos lo mejor posible.

En la actualidad, no todos los hijos del veterano actor de 77 años han seguido los pasos de su padre, sino que han elegido una vida más tranquila y alejada de los focos. La mayoría de los hijos han mantenido sus vidas en la más absoluta intimidad, por lo que no se sabe mucho de ellos. Sin embargo, De Niro ha hablado en varias ocasiones con diversos medios de comunicación sobre su papel como padre y sobre sus hijos.

En junio de 2020, De Niro se sinceró sobre su experiencia en la crianza de hijos birraciales en un episodio de "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon". Compartió algunos de sus miedos y pidió que las cosas cambien en Estados Unidos. Sigue leyendo para saber más sobre los hijos de Robert y comprobar que no solo es un actor fenomenal, sino también un padre excepcional.

Robert was born on Aug. 17, 1943, in New York City, New York. He found a love for acting at a young age and especially appreciated it as it helped him overcome his shyness. As Robert grew up, he took the art more seriously, studying acting at HB Studio, Stella Adler Conservatory and the Actors Studio. Soon enough, he started finding work in the industry.

Nowadays, the world knows Robert as a renowned actor. He has won a litany of prestigious awards over his many years as a working actor and has even earned the Presidential Medal of Freedom from former US President Barack Obama. Some of his best-recognized performances include “Taxi Driver,” “Silver Linings Playbook,” The Irishman,” “Goodfellas” and “The Godfather II.”

Robert has also proved to have many skills behind the camera. He founded the film and television production company TriBeCa Productions with producer Jane Rosenthal. The pair also founded the Tribeca Film Festival in 2002.

The talented man has continued to make waves in the entertainment industry. According to his IMDB, Robert has stayed busy making films in recent years. Some of his projects include “Joker” with Joaquin Phoenix, “Savage Salvation,” “The Comeback Trail,” “The War with Grandpa” and “Amsterdam.” The latter film also featured a plethora of other notable stars, including Christian Bale, Margot Robbie, Anya-Taylor Joy and Taylor Swift.

Robert has certainly left a lasting impression on people from all walks of life. From his family to his friends to his fans, Robert has continued to touch the lives of many. 

One of Robert’s dearest friends is acclaimed actress Meryl Streep. The actress is best recognized for her work on stage and in films. Some of her most popular productions include “The Devil Wears Prada,” “Julie & Julia,” “Into the Woods,” “Little Women” and “Mamma Mia!”

Robert and Streep are truly legends in their own right. While Robert has made a name for himself in countless films, he spoke with Parade in 2011 about how he learned never to take fame for granted. He explained:

“You have to be very careful with all that because it is fleeting. I think if you have the opportunity to work and do things such as I have, you have to be grateful that you had the chance and take advantage of the opportunity because you might not ever get another one.”

Streep also has a great deal of success and fame under her belt, so much so that “Her Again: Becoming Meryl Streep” author Michael Schulman called her the “‘Iron Lady’ of acting.” And while both Robert and Streep have found success individually, they have also found it together.

The pair have known each other for quite some time. They have co-starred in a handful of films together, including “The Deer Hunter” in 1974, “Falling in Love” in 1984, “Marvin’s Room” in 1996 and “First Man” in 2004. The two stars have somehow teamed up almost every decade, it seems! With that in mind, it’s not surprising that they have shown their appreciation for one another over the years as well.

In 2017 fans and fellow peers of Streep showed their appreciation for the actress following her win at the Golden Globe Awards. She received the Cecil B. DeMille Award, according to PEOPLE. Robert had been honored with the same award back in 2011 and was very moved by Streep’s speech, where she talked about how hurt she was seeing another public figure mocking someone with a disability. 

Robert wrote Streep a letter that said:

“What you said was great. It needed to be said, and you said it beautifully. I have so much respect for you that you did it while the world was celebrating your achievements. I share your sentiments about punks and bullies. Enough is enough. You, with your elegance and intelligence, have a powerful voice — one that inspires others to speak up as they should so their voices will be heard too. It is so important that we ALL speak up. We love you.”

Streep was sure to return the sentiment in 2018 when Robert once again shared more reasons why he appreciated the actress. According to Entertainment Tonight, Robert delivered a touching speech to his friend as she was given the award for Best Actress at the National Board of Review Annual Awards Gala.

“Meryl is the most generous and giving actor,” he said. “She not only inhabits her own character, she helps bring out the character of everyone else on the screen.” The actor continued: “Meryl, thank you for speaking out on matters of conscience that affect us all. Thank you for being an actress who plays the most interesting characters with full commitment and without judgment.”

Robert concluded his speech: “Meryl doesn’t seem to have any imperfections. And I say that with the most love for you, Meryl. I love you so much.” 

Streep seemed to feel the same as she gave her kind friend a big hug and a surprising kiss on the lips, too!

Although the kiss was nothing romantic, it was clear that Streep and Robert shared — and still share — a great deal of love for one another, and their friendship is as strong as ever.

Streep is not the only famous friend Robert has, though, as he is also wonderful friends with Al Pacino. The two legends starred in Martin Scorsese’s “The Irishman” together. And after 50 years of delivering riveting performances on screen, the film proved to be a crowning achievement for them both.

This was also not the first time Robert worked with Scorsese, and the two joined forces on several movies together, including “Taxi Driver” and “Goodfellas.”

“The Irishman,” which received great reviews, was based on a novel by Charles Brandt about the mysterious disappearance of Jimmy Hoffa, played by Pacino in the film. Despite the advancing ages of the men, their performances in the film were highly charged and emotional.

While Robert and Pacino each have had respectable careers for several decades, they have also been friends for over 50 years. The pair have a unique bond that could only come from both being lauded as two of the greatest living actors of our time.

Robert and Pacino had not appeared in the same scene together since the 1995 film “Heat,” but it only lasted for a few short moments. 

Although the two went on to make many great films separately, Robert and Pacino proved that they worked well together both on-screen and off. 

As the pair sat together in a GQ interview to talk about their friendship and their careers, they relaxed like two old friends. Pacino tried to recall how long they had known each other, and De Niro stated that it had been over 40 years. Robert corrected him, saying it had been even more. 

Pacino also described his impression of Robert the first time he saw him. He was impressed with his unique demeanor and charisma. He knew that he possessed some special qualities.

Of course, as someone who has been in the industry for multiple decades, Robert has formed more friendships with more people, including more of his former co-stars.

Speaking to the SAG-AFTRA foundation podcast in 2014, Leonardo DiCaprio talked about how much he admires Robert and the friendship they share, as well as his partnership with Scorsese.

“He is my favorite actor of all time, he really is,” DiCaprio revealed, speaking about Robert. “That relationship with him and Scorsese just influenced every one of my friends in the industry that I’ve met through the years. That is sort of the golden relationship of cinema to me.”

DiCaprio had worked with Robert on three films already, “This Boy’s Life,” “Marvin's Room” and “The Audition.” 

Robert has surely proven that his friends mean a great deal to him, but no one means more to him than his family – especially his children.

Si bien su sólida y encomiable carrera como actor es algo de lo que Robert está orgulloso, su papel como padre es algo que aprecia aún más. Robert ha estado casado dos veces en el pasado. Su primer matrimonio fue con la cantante Diahnne Abbot, con la que estuvo casado durante 12 años, de 1976 a 1988. Durante este tiempo, Robert y Abbot tuvieron juntos un hijo, Raphael De Niro, y Robert también adoptó a Drena De Niro, hija de la relación anterior de Abbot.

MindFood informa de que Raphael trabajó como actor durante algún tiempo antes de seguir una carrera inmobiliaria. Después de Abbot, mantuvo una relación de larga duración con la modelo Toukie Smith, de 1988 a 1996. Con Smith tuvo dos hijos gemelos, Aaron y Julian, a través de un vientre de alquiler, según PEOPLE.

Su último matrimonio fue con la actriz Grace Hightower, con la que compartió una relación algo volátil. La pareja se casó en 1997 y tuvo un hijo, Eliot, que nació en 1998, antes de separarse en 1999. Según PEOPLE, la pareja estuvo en una batalla por la custodia durante un tiempo, pero finalmente limaron asperezas e incluso celebraron una ceremonia de renovación de votos en 2004, antes de separarse definitivamente en 2018. Además de Eliot, tuvieron a Helen, que nació en 2011 mediante gestación subrogada.

Cuando se trata de entrevistas y de hablar abiertamente de cualquiera de sus experiencias, Robert es conocido por sus labios notoriamente cerrados. A lo largo de los años, ha dicho muy poco sobre sus gustos, disgustos y opiniones, pero en esos momentos también se ha abierto sobre su familia.

Los hijos de Robert tienen distintas edades y diferentes crianzas, lo que significa que a veces hay desafíos. "Me encantan mis hijos, simplemente estar con ellos", dijo a Us Weekly. "No es fácil. A veces es divertido y quieres a tus hijos, y a veces quieres matarlos". El actor también añadió: "Entonces, cuando tienes los buenos momentos, te olvidas de los que no fueron buenos". Probablemente, muchos padres puedan entender esto.

El actor también compartió cómo intenta estar ahí para sus hijos. Robert dijo a MindFood en 2014: "Intento ser honesto con mis hijos y que confíen en mí, por así decirlo. Les hago saber que lo que están pasando no es muy diferente de lo que yo pasé mientras crecía".

Aunque algunas cosas siguen siendo las mismas que cuando él crecía, una diferencia que Robert ha reconocido es que todos sus hijos son birraciales y él no. Habló del tema en "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon". Robert compartió:

"Mis hijos son todos mitad negros, e incluso yo doy por sentadas ciertas cosas. Cuando la gente dice que les dicen a sus hijos: 'Mantén las manos (fuera) cuando te pare cualquier policía, mantén las manos en el volante, no hagas un movimiento brusco, no pongas las manos abajo, no hagas esto', lo entiendes. Eso da miedo. Eso tiene que cambiar".

Robert siempre intenta guiar a sus hijos en la dirección correcta. Hablando con PEOPLE en enero de 2020, dijo: "A mis hijos les digo: 'Si quieres ser actor o quieres hacer esto o aquello, está bien, siempre que seas feliz. Pero no te subestimes'".

Por la forma en que habla de sus hijos, parece que De Niro es un padre increíble. ¿Qué opinas de su experiencia en la crianza de niños birraciales en Estados Unidos? Déjanos saber y asegúrate de compartirlo con todos los fans de De Niro que conozcas.