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Is there a more recognisable actor than Robert de Niro? Since his early career in the 1960s and rise to prominence in the 70s, De Niro has starred in dozens of films, working with a 'who's who' of great directors and fellow actors. Having celebrated his 70th birthday earlier this year, he remains as active as ever, with four films released so far in 2013 and another three expected before the end of the year.
De Niro's latest film sees him teaming up with veteran French director Luc Besson for mobster comedy The Family. The story sees De Niro's mobster Giovanni and his family forced to enter witness protection in France. De Niro was joined by his co-stars Michelle Pfeiffer and Dianna Agron for an interview on The Green Room with Orla Barry.
Many of De Niro's most beloved films have featured him playing mobsters or criminals, and The Family sees him returning to one of his most comfortable 'types'. How did he prepare for this particular one? De Niro told Orla he was able to draw on inspiration from his experiences in one of his most famous films. "I had some experience before with Henry Hill, doing Goodfellas," he said. "Every time I had a question I'd get word to him that I needed to talk to him, and he'd call me on set." Although Hill died last year, De Niro was able to revisit Goodfellas itself in preparing this time around. "There were things on the [Goodfellas] DVD I hadn't been aware of," he says. "I went through the whole film carefully, and the other stuff on the DVD, and it was all really helpful to me".
Of course, the tones of Goodfellas and The Family are radically different. "This one... it is what it is," according to De Niro. "It's not about accuracy in the witness protection programme... I think there were a lot of interesting details in it as is". Agron agrees, saying the film is "a little bit more fun. This isn't a serious, in-depth story of what it would be like. It just gave us room to play."
For De Niro, playing gangsters all boils down to whether "if it's written well" or not. Then, he says, "it's fun to do. Especially if I'm doing them with Luc [Besson] or Marty Scorsese. We have another one we're going to do, and I'm very much looking forward to it."
De Niro reflected on the enduring appeal of mob characters, telling Orla, "I guess people are fascinated by them. They're against the establishment in some ways, and in some ways they're not. There are people out there who can write it very well and explain better than I can why people are fascinated by them".
The Family was shot in France, and for De Niro shooting abroad is something to take advantage of. "I always feel when you're on location, you take advantage of it," he reflects. "You never know when you're going to be back there, if ever". Agron had a particularly interesting experience, reminiscing that "I went to a livestock fair with Tommy Lee Jones, which was one of the most comical things that has ever happened to me in my life. They don't know who Tommy Lee Jones is in Normandy, so Tommy is having the time of his life, because he's a cowboy!"
In terms of future projects, De Niro elaborated on the progress himself and Martin Scorsese are making on The Irishman. The film will be based on the life of Frank "The Irishman" Sheeran, a labour union official alleged to have links with organised crime. De Niro says "we're preparing it, we have a script. Marty has another film he's doing before we do it, so it will be a while." The film will mark the 9th collaboration between Scorsese and De Niro, following the likes of Mean Streets, Goodfellas and Raging Bull.
Will De Niro ever sit down and write his memoirs or autobiography? "I haven't really entertained that much," he confessed. "It takes time to do that. Once Scorsese and I were thinking of doing a book together... we might still, but that was as far as it went".
(Image: Wikimedia Commons)
