Robert De Niro would never want to play President Donald Trump – because he has no respect for the American leader.
The 75-year-old star has been very outspoken in his criticism of the president – including the moment he simply said "F**k Trump" as he appeared on stage at the Tony Awards last June – and now he’s addressed the businessman-turned-politician from an actor’s perspective, insisting he simply isn’t interested in telling Trump’s story.
He told The Guardian newspaper: "I don’t want to play him ever. I always find the character’s point of view and I can of course find his, but I have so little sympathy for him, for what he’s done, the responsibility he’s been given and just thrown away. He doesn’t care.
"I always say every person has a story that’s interesting. It’s how you tell it. And of course his ‘how you tell it’ would be interesting, too, but I’ve not seen one moment of reflection from him, ever.
"He knows what he is and everything he says negative about people or things is really a projection of himself. I don’t know how he was raised but I never thought there’d be evil people – he’s not even evil. He’s mundane."
De Niro was also asked if he believed Trump was a "white supremacist", and compared him to dictators like Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini.
He responded: "Yes. [And a fascist?] I guess that’s what it leads to. If he had his way, we’d wind up in a very bad state in this country."
The ‘Taxi Driver’ star’s most recent comments come after a suspicious package was found at his Tribeca Grill restaurant in New York City.
The incident in October came shortly after it was revealed that suspected explosive devices were recently sent to top Democrats in the US, including former President Barack Obama and former Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, as well as the news network CNN.
Meanwhile, Trump previously hit out at the actor after De Niro – who played boxer Jake LaMotta in ‘Raging Bull’ – criticised him at the Tony Awards.
Trump wrote on Twitter after the ceremony: "Robert De Niro, a very Low IQ individual, has received too many shots to the head by real boxers in movies. I watched him last night and truly believe he may be ‘punch-drunk’ (sic)"
Robert De Niro: I would never play Donald Trump
