Robert De Niro’s rumored reprisal of Taxi Driver character Travis Bickle in Uber ad draws criticism from film’s screenwriter: ‘Why Bob would do this is beyond my reckoning’
- Rep for actor, 80, denied he is playing Bickle again or using line from film
- Uber confirmed De Niro is in U.K. ad campaign slated to roll out soon
- Bickle stands out as one of De Niro’s signature roles in an unparalleled career
Amid speculation Robert De Niro is reprising his iconic role of Taxi Driver’s Travis Bickle for an Uber ad campaign in the U.K., the film’s screenwriter questioned the move on social media.
Paul Schrader, 77, took to Facebook on Wednesday posting his commentary to an item from the site Hollywood Elsewhere titled ’80-Year-Old DeNiro Is Meaningless in Travis Bickle Context.’
Schrader wrote in response to the piece, ‘Ouch. Why Bob would do this is beyond my reckoning. But I haven’t seen it. If I’m lucky I never will.’
De Niro was seen in London on Thursday filming an ad for Uber opposite actor Asa Butterfield.
Stan Rosenfield, a rep for the actor said that De Niro, 80, would not be reprising the role of the societal outcast from the 1976 film that was directed by Martin Scorsese; nor would he use Bickle’s line from the film, ‘You talkin’ to me?”
The latest: Amid speculation Robert De Niro, 80, is reprising his iconic role of Taxi Driver’s Travis Bickle for an Uber ad campaign in the U.K., the film’s screenwriter Paul Schrader, 77, questioned the move on social media
‘De Niro’s Uber commercial has nothing to do with his Taxi Driver character,’ Rosenfield told The Hollywood Reporter.
Uber issued a statement confirming De Niro’s presence in an ad campaign slated to roll out in the coming months.
‘We are filming with Robert De Niro in London for a new Uber UK campaign, which will launch later in the year,’ the rideshare company said, according to Variety.
Taxi Driver, which hit theaters in February of 1976, costarred Jodie Foster, Cybill Shepherd, Albert Brooks, Diahnne Abbott and the late Peter Boyle.
The film followed the Bickle character, a mentally-disturbed loner New York City cab driver, through a series of interactions and relationships wrought with violence.
The film, which was nominated for four Academy Awards – including Best Picture and Best Actor for De Niro – has remained a cultural staple, and Bickle stands out as one of De Niro’s signature roles in an unparalleled career.
Schrader had worked with Scorsese on a number of notable films, including 1980’s Raging Bull – for which De Niro won the Best Actor for playing boxer Jake LaMotta – as well as 1988’s The Last Temptation of Christ and 1999’s Bringing Out the Dead.
He has also written and directed films such as 1980’s American Gigolo, 1997’s Affliction, 2017’s First Reformed – for which he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay – and 2022’s Master Gardener.
Schrader took to Facebook on Wednesday posting his commentary to an item from the site Hollywood Elsewhere titled ’80-Year-Old DeNiro Is Meaningless in Travis Bickle Context’
Taxi Driver followed the Bickle character, a mentally-disturbed loner New York City cab driver, through a series of interactions and relationships wrought with violence.
De Niro is one of many celebs who Uber has hired to promote its business in recent years, as the company has also had ads featuring Gwyneth Paltrow, Sarah Silverman, Trevor Noah, Jennifer Coolidge and Nicholas Braun.
De Niro and Scorsese are collaborating again – marking their 10th film together – on the highly-anticipated crime Killers of the Flower Moon.
The period piece, which is set in the 1920s, also stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Lily Gladstone, as well as Jesse Plemons, Tantoo Cardinal, John Lithgow and Brendan Fraser. It is due in theaters October 20.
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