Robert De Niro has been accused of “unwanted physical contact,” verbal abuse, and misogyny by ex employee
On Thursday, October 3rd, a former employee of Robert De Niro‘s company, Canal Productions, filed a lawsuit against the actor and his company, claiming De Niro initiated “gratuitous unwanted physical contact,” made “sexually charged comments,” and treated her as his “office wife” throughout her employment.
This lawsuit is the latest action made in a longwinded legal battle between De Niro and Graham Chase Robinson, who was once the vice president of production and finance at Canal Productions.
According to NBC News, De Niro was actually the first party to bring a lawsuit to the table back in August. De Niro and Canal Productions claimed Robinson “[breached] her fiduciary duties” by racking up expenses on the company card, and watching Netflix during work hours.
Robinson claims that De Niro’s August lawsuit was his attempt to “strike first,” and “inhibit [her] from pursuing her claims, destroy her reputation, and obliterate her job prospects,” after Robinson informed her former boss that she would be serving him with a discrimination suit.
"Robert De Niro is someone who has clung to old mores," Robinson's complaint reads, per NBC. "He does not accept the idea that men should treat women as equals. He does not care that gender discrimination in the workplace violates the law Ms. Robinson is a casualty of this attitude."
A former employee of Robert De Niro's company files lawsuit in federal court accusing the actor of initiating "gratuitous unwanted physical contact," making "sexually charged comments," and treating her as his "office wife." https://t.co/m8Okw2XkiP
— NBC News (@NBCNews) October 3, 2019
The “attitude” Robinson’s complaint describes reportedly caused De Niro to assign her “demeaning duties,” such as washing his bedsheets, buttoning his shirt, and scratching his back. Furthermore, she alleges that De Niro verbally abused her with “inappropriate gendered comments” while intoxicated.
As reported by both NBC, and CBS News, De Niro even left her a vicious voicemail in which he called her a "spoiled brat." He then said, "How dare you [expletive] disrespect me...you're [expletive] history."
The voicemail is available to listen to via the website of Robinson’s law firm, Sanford Heisler Sharp.
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Robinson also accuses De Niro and Canal Productions of violating the Equal Pay Act, and is demanding $12 million in damages, including compensation for all the times she was underpaid.
De Niro’s camp denies all of Robinson’s allegations. His attorney stated per CBS News, “the allegations made by Graham Chase Robinson against Robert De Niro are beyond absurd.”
We’ll be following this story and update you as more details unfold.
