Robert De Niro is one of the most respected actors in the history of American cinema. With a career spanning more than five decades, he has played some of the most memorable and complex characters ever seen on screen, from the troubled boxer Jake LaMotta in Raging Bull to the young gangster Vito Corleone in The Godfather Part II.
He has worked with some of Hollywood’s greatest directors, including Martin Scorsese, Francis Ford Coppola, Michael Mann and Sergio Leone. While he became famous for intense dramatic performances, De Niro later demonstrated his versatility through comedy, family films and television.
Beyond acting, he is also a producer, businessman and co-founder of the Tribeca Festival in New York City.
At 83, De Niro remains an active figure in entertainment, making him not only a legendary Hollywood actor but also one of the rare performers whose career has continued across several generations.
Robert De Niro Biography at a Glance
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Full name | Robert Anthony De Niro Jr. |
| Date of birth | August 17, 1943 |
| Age | 83 |
| Birthplace | New York City, USA |
| Nationality | American |
| Profession | Actor, producer and businessman |
| Years active | 1965–present |
| Best known for | The Godfather Part II, Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, Goodfellas, Heat and The Irishman |
| Spouse | Tiffany Chen |
| Children | Seven |
| Academy Awards | 2 wins |
| Notable collaborator | Martin Scorsese |
| Known for | Dramatic acting, method acting and character roles |
Who Is Robert De Niro?
Robert De Niro is an American actor and producer who became one of the defining performers of the New Hollywood era.
Born and raised in New York City, De Niro developed an interest in acting at a young age. He eventually studied under respected acting teachers and began appearing in small film roles before his career took off.
His breakthrough came during the 1970s, a period that transformed American filmmaking.
De Niro quickly became known for his intense preparation, physical transformations and ability to disappear completely into difficult characters.
His collaborations with director Martin Scorsese became particularly important to his career and to American cinema more broadly.
Robert De Niro’s Early Life
Robert Anthony De Niro Jr. was born on August 17, 1943, in Manhattan, New York City.
His parents, Robert De Niro Sr. and Virginia Admiral, were both artists. His father was an accomplished abstract expressionist painter, while his mother was a poet and painter. De Niro grew up in Manhattan’s Greenwich Village and Little Italy neighborhoods.His parents divorced when he was young, and he was largely raised by his mother.
Growing up in New York had a major influence on De Niro’s eventual career. The city and its neighborhoods would later appear repeatedly in his films and become closely associated with his screen persona.
How Robert De Niro Became an Actor
De Niro became interested in acting during his teenage years. He studied at the Stella Adler Conservatory and later worked with acting teacher Lee Strasberg at the Actors Studio.
His early training exposed him to the principles of method acting, an approach that emphasizes deep character preparation and emotional authenticity.
De Niro began appearing in films during the 1960s, including Greetings and The Wedding Party. His early performances were relatively small, but they helped him establish himself within New York’s growing independent film community.
Robert De Niro’s Breakthrough
De Niro’s major breakthrough came in the early 1970s. He appeared in Martin Scorsese’s Mean Streets in 1973, playing the volatile Johnny Boy. The performance immediately demonstrated De Niro’s ability to create unpredictable and complicated characters. His work attracted the attention of major filmmakers, and his career soon reached another level.
In 1974, he was cast as the young Vito Corleone in Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather Part II. The role changed his career forever.
Robert De Niro in The Godfather Part II
De Niro played a young Vito Corleone in The Godfather Part II, portraying the character originally made famous by Marlon Brando. Rather than simply imitating Brando, De Niro created his own interpretation of Vito, showing the character as a young immigrant gradually building a criminal empire. His performance was widely praised.
De Niro won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for the role.
The victory made him one of the most prominent young actors in Hollywood. It also created an unusual connection between De Niro and Marlon Brando: both actors won Oscars for portraying the same fictional character at different stages of Vito Corleone’s life.
Robert De Niro and Martin Scorsese
One of the most important creative partnerships in De Niro’s career has been his relationship with director Martin Scorsese. The pair first worked together on Mean Streets and subsequently collaborated on several influential films.
Their most famous collaborations include:
- Mean Streets (1973)
- Taxi Driver (1976)
- Raging Bull (1980)
- The King of Comedy (1982)
- Goodfellas (1990)
- Cape Fear (1991)
- Casino (1995)
- The Irishman (2019)
Their films often explore crime, violence, ambition, guilt, masculinity and the darker side of American life. Together, De Niro and Scorsese helped define a particular style of American filmmaking that became enormously influential.
Robert De Niro in Taxi Driver
In 1976, De Niro starred in Scorsese’s Taxi Driver as Travis Bickle. Bickle is a lonely New York taxi driver whose increasingly disturbed worldview leads him toward violence. The film became one of the most influential movies of the 1970s.
De Niro’s performance was particularly memorable for its psychological intensity. The character’s line, “You talkin’ to me?” became one of the most recognizable moments in American movie history.
Taxi Driver earned four Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture and Best Actor for De Niro.
Robert De Niro in Raging Bull
De Niro’s performance in Raging Bull is widely considered one of the greatest acting performances in cinema. Released in 1980, the film was directed by Martin Scorsese and based on the life of boxer Jake LaMotta.
De Niro underwent a dramatic physical transformation for the role, gaining significant weight to portray LaMotta later in life. His commitment to the character became part of Hollywood folklore.
De Niro won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance. The role demonstrated his willingness to completely transform himself physically and psychologically for a character.
Robert De Niro’s Greatest Movies
Over the course of his career, De Niro has appeared in an enormous number of films.
Some of his most important and popular movies include:
- Mean Streets (1973)
- The Godfather Part II (1974)
- Taxi Driver (1976)
- The Deer Hunter (1978)
- Raging Bull (1980)
- The King of Comedy (1982)
- Once Upon a Time in America (1984)
- The Untouchables (1987)
- Goodfellas (1990)
- Awakenings (1990)
- Cape Fear (1991)
- A Bronx Tale (1993)
- Casino (1995)
- Heat (1995)
- Meet the Parents (2000)
- The Intern (2015)
- Joker (2019)
- The Irishman (2019)
- Killers of the Flower Moon (2023)
His filmography demonstrates just how wide his range became. While he established himself through serious crime dramas and psychological films, he later became equally recognizable to mainstream audiences through comedies such as Meet the Parents.
Robert De Niro and Goodfellas
De Niro played Jimmy Conway in Martin Scorsese’s 1990 crime film Goodfellas. The movie tells the story of Henry Hill and his involvement with the American Mafia. De Niro’s Jimmy Conway is intelligent, charming and extremely dangerous.
Goodfellas became one of the most celebrated gangster movies ever made and remains one of the most important films in De Niro’s career.
Robert De Niro in Heat
In 1995, De Niro starred opposite Al Pacino in Michael Mann’s crime thriller Heat. De Niro played professional thief Neil McCauley, while Pacino portrayed Los Angeles police detective Vincent Hanna.
Although the two actors had appeared in The Godfather Part II, they did not share a major scene in that film. Heat therefore became particularly memorable because it brought two of America’s most respected actors together on screen in direct opposition. The film is now regarded as a modern crime classic.
Robert De Niro’s Comedy Career
Although De Niro became famous for intense dramatic performances, he eventually demonstrated an impressive talent for comedy.
His performance as Jack Byrnes in Meet the Parents introduced him to a much broader mainstream audience. The character was almost the opposite of many of his earlier roles: intimidating but frequently hilarious.
He reprised the role in Meet the Fockers and Little Fockers. His willingness to make fun of his serious screen image became an important part of his later career.
Robert De Niro in The Irishman
In 2019, De Niro reunited with Martin Scorsese for The Irishman. The film also starred Al Pacino and Joe Pesci. De Niro played Frank Sheeran, a truck driver and alleged Mafia associate who looks back on his life and relationships.
The movie received widespread critical acclaim and earned numerous Academy Award nominations. For De Niro, the project represented another major collaboration with Scorsese and a reflection on the themes of aging, loyalty, regret and mortality.
Robert De Niro in Killers of the Flower Moon
De Niro reunited with Scorsese once again in 2023 for Killers of the Flower Moon. He played William Hale, a wealthy and influential man involved in the exploitation and murder of members of the Osage Nation.
The film starred Leonardo DiCaprio and Lily Gladstone alongside De Niro. His performance demonstrated that even after decades in Hollywood, De Niro could still take on challenging dramatic roles.
Robert De Niro’s Awards
De Niro has received numerous awards and nominations during his career.
His two Academy Award wins came for:
Best Supporting Actor: The Godfather Part II (1974)
Best Actor: Raging Bull (1980)
He has also received nominations for films including Taxi Driver, The Deer Hunter, Awakenings, Cape Fear, Silver Linings Playbook, The Irishman and Killers of the Flower Moon. His long career has earned him recognition from numerous major film organizations.
Robert De Niro’s Personal Life
Despite spending most of his adult life in the public eye, De Niro has generally maintained a degree of privacy around his family.
He has been married twice. His first marriage was to actress and singer Diahnne Abbott, whom he married in 1976. They later divorced.
He subsequently married actress Grace Hightower in 1997. The couple separated and later reconciled before eventually divorcing. De Niro has also had long-term relationships outside of his marriages.
How Many Children Does Robert De Niro Have?
Robert De Niro is the father of seven children.
His children are:
- Drena De Niro
- Raphael De Niro
- Elliot De Niro
- Helen Grace De Niro
- Julian Henry De Niro
- Aaron Kendrick De Niro
- Gia Virginia Chen-De Niro
His children were born from his relationships with Diahnne Abbott, Toukie Smith and Grace Hightower, as well as his later relationship with Tiffany Chen. De Niro has spoken at different times about the importance of family and fatherhood.
Who Is Robert De Niro’s Partner?
De Niro is in a relationship with Tiffany Chen, a martial arts instructor. The couple welcomed a daughter, Gia Virginia Chen-De Niro, in 2023.
De Niro has spoken publicly about becoming a father again later in life and about the joy his youngest daughter has brought him.
Robert De Niro’s Business Career
De Niro’s influence extends beyond acting. He became involved in the restaurant and hospitality industries and is closely associated with the Nobu restaurant and hotel brand.
He also co-founded the Tribeca Festival, originally established as the Tribeca Film Festival, following the September 11 attacks. The festival was created in part to help revitalize Lower Manhattan and has since become a major cultural event.
His work outside acting has helped establish De Niro as a businessman and cultural figure as well as a Hollywood star.
Robert De Niro and the Tribeca Festival
The Tribeca Festival was founded in 2001 by De Niro, Jane Rosenthal and Craig Hatkoff. It began as an effort to bring energy and economic activity back to Lower Manhattan following the September 11 attacks.
The festival eventually expanded beyond traditional filmmaking to include television, music, gaming and other forms of storytelling. It remains one of De Niro’s most significant contributions outside his acting career.
Robert De Niro’s Net Worth
Robert De Niro has earned substantial wealth through his long acting career, film production, restaurant businesses, hotel investments and other ventures.
What Makes Robert De Niro So Famous?
De Niro’s longevity is one of the most remarkable aspects of his career. He has successfully moved between generations of filmmaking.
Older audiences may remember him from Taxi Driver, Raging Bull and The Deer Hunter. The next generation may know him from Goodfellas, Casino and Heat.
Younger audiences may recognize him from Meet the Parents, Joker or Killers of the Flower Moon. His performances have also influenced generations of actors who followed him.
Robert De Niro’s Acting Style
De Niro is frequently associated with method acting and extraordinary character preparation. For certain roles, he has made dramatic physical changes, learned specialized skills and immersed himself deeply in the world of his character.
His preparation for Raging Bull became particularly famous because of the physical transformation he underwent. But De Niro’s greatest strength may simply be his ability to make complicated characters feel believable. Whether playing a gangster, boxer, police officer, comedian, businessman or troubled outsider, he has repeatedly found ways to give his characters distinctive personalities.
Robert De Niro’s Legacy
Few actors have had careers as influential or enduring as Robert De Niro. He emerged during one of the most important periods in American cinema and became a central figure in the New Hollywood movement.
His collaborations with Martin Scorsese produced several films that are now considered classics.
His performances in The Godfather Part II, Taxi Driver and Raging Bull helped redefine what audiences expected from leading actors. The most impressive part of De Niro’s career is his willingness to keep changing.
He moved from intense dramas to crime films, comedies, family movies and television without becoming permanently associated with a single type of character. More than five decades after his professional career began, Robert De Niro remains one of the most recognizable and respected names in cinema.
Frequently Asked Questions About Robert De Niro
How old is Robert De Niro?
Robert De Niro was born on August 17, 1943, making him 83 years old in 2026.
Where was Robert De Niro born?
He was born in Manhattan, New York City, United States.
How many Oscars has Robert De Niro won?
Robert De Niro has won two Academy Awards: Best Supporting Actor for The Godfather Part II and Best Actor for Raging Bull.
What is Robert De Niro’s most famous movie?
There is no single answer, but his most acclaimed films include Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, The Godfather Part II, Goodfellas, Heat and The Irishman.
Is Robert De Niro married?
Robert De Niro has been married twice. He is currently in a relationship with Tiffany Chen.
How many children does Robert De Niro have?
De Niro has seven children.
Who is Robert De Niro’s youngest child?
His youngest child is Gia Virginia Chen-De Niro, whom he welcomed with Tiffany Chen in 2023.
Is Robert De Niro still acting?
Yes. De Niro continues to work in film and television and remains active as an actor and producer.
How many times has Robert De Niro worked with Martin Scorsese?
De Niro and Scorsese have collaborated on numerous major films, including Mean Streets, Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, The King of Comedy, Goodfellas, Cape Fear, Casino and The Irishman.
Final Thoughts
Robert De Niro’s story is ultimately a story about longevity. He started as a young actor in New York and went on to become one of the defining performers of modern American cinema.
His career has included unforgettable dramatic performances, iconic gangster movies, successful comedies and collaborations with some of the greatest filmmakers of his generation. What makes his career especially remarkable is that he never remained trapped in the image created by his early success.
He could play a frightening gangster one year and a hilariously intimidating father the next. For more than 50 years, audiences have continued to find new reasons to watch him.
And that may be the clearest measure of Robert De Niro’s legacy: he did not simply become a movie star; he became part of the history of cinema itself.