Robert De Niro’s former top executive assistant said she found it “creepy” when the actor insisted she scratch his back, an example of behaviour she found controlling and abusive before she quit her job in 2019, she testified Friday at a New York civil trial.
She said she suffers from anxiety and depression and hasn’t worked in four years despite applying for 638 jobs. Robinson said the back-scratching had occurred several times over the years until she offered a mild protest once, suggesting to De Niro that there was a device he could use instead.She described the comment as “creepy” and “disgusting.”
Robinson said part of her duties that required her to be available around the clock included helping De Niro navigate a complicated love life that at one point involved a wife, an ex-girlfriend and a new girlfriend that he didn’t want the world to yet know about.