Robert De Niro Shared His Unfiltered Thoughts on Trump After Alleging His Original Speech Was Tampered With

While some criticize celebrities for not speaking out about political issues, others complain when celebrities get too political during speeches or on social media. And though there’s yet to be a line on that spectrum that doesn’t garner any criticism, Robert De Niro wasn’t afraid to make his opinion heard in his latest speech.

While the legendary actor took the stage at the 2023 Gotham Awards in honor of Martin Scorsese and his latest film Killers of the Flower Moon, De Niro made his anti-DonaldTrump opinions crystal clear. “Watching the news these days makes one think from a political point of view that we’re living in a post-truth society,” he began, per Daily Mail. “Filmmakers, on the other hand, at least aim for the truth, we tell stories about people, people we can relate to, with no other agenda than to engage, enlighten and entertain.”

After honoring Scorsese’s lifetime of work, and receiving some applause, De Niro then revealed that his speech was actually tampered with prior to hitting the teleprompter. “I just want to say one thing: the beginning of my speech was edited, cut out, and I didn’t know about it and I want to read it,” he said, receiving applause.

“History isn’t history anymore,” De Niro continued, this time reading from his phone. “Truth is not truth. Even facts are being replaced by alternative facts and driven by conspiracy theories and ugliness.”

“In Florida, young students are taught that slaves were taught skills that could be applied for their personal benefit,” De Niro continued. “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.'”

“Lying has become just another tool in the charlatan’s arsenal,” De Niro then accused. “The former President lied to us more than 30,000 times during his four years in office. And he’s keeping up the pace in his current campaign of retribution. But in all his lies, he can’t hide his soul. He attacks the weak, destroys the gifts of nature and shows disrespect by, for example, using Pocahontas as a slur.”

De Niro, who was clearly frustrated with the situation, even added that he didn’t feel like thanking the event’s organizers. “I don’t feel like thanking them at all for what they did,” he said, “how dare they do that actually.”

And while we’re left to think that De Niro’s speech was altered due to time constraints or for keeping the subject matter focused on Scorsese, it’s safe to say that editing any portion of it without telling him was a mistake. After all, De Niro was in front on hundreds of people from his industry and was left in the dark.

Before you go, click here to see every time Ivanka Trump has tried to distance herself from the Trump family: