Robert De Niro breaks his silence over transgender daughter Airyn

Robert De Niro shared support for his transgender daughter Airyn De Niro, a day after she came out as a trans woman. 

The Goodfellas star, 81, said he ‘loves and supports’ Airyn, 29, who is one of his seven children.

‘I loved and supported Aaron as my son, and now I love and support Airyn as my daughter,’ the Oscar winner said in a statement to TMZ on Wednesday.

‘I don’t know what the big deal is … I love all my children,’ the cinema icon added of Airyn, who began hormone therapy last year.

De Niro shares Airyn and her twin brother Julian, 29, with actress Toukie Smith, 72. The pair dated from 1988 to 1996.

His words of support come after Airyn did an extensive interview about her coming out journey to a prominent gay, lesbian and trans magazine.

Airyn discussed how she hopes to serve as a role model for queer women of color creating their own definition of beauty.

She sat down with Them contributor Ava Pauline Emilione at a cafe in Williamsburg, New York, to talk about everything from her favorite video game, to her new pink locks, to growing up as the daughter of one of the world’s most famous actors.

‘Not only did they get information wrong about me…They just sort of reminded me that people really don’t know anything about me,’ she began.

She also talked about her parents.

‘Obviously no parent is perfect, but I am grateful that both my parents agreed to keep me out of the limelight. They wanted it very private,’ she said.

‘They have told me they wanted me to have as much of a normal childhood as possible.’

She then addressed deciding to begin hormone therapy / transition in November 2024.

‘Trans women being honest and open, especially [in] public spaces like social media and getting to see them in their success… I’m like, you know what? Maybe it’s not too late for me,’ she noted.

‘Maybe I can start.’

And there was a reason she wanted to address her gender identity.