Entertainment

De Niro Honors His Father In New HBO Documentary

by Kaitlin Reilly

Robert De Niro is stepping behind the camera to honor his father. De Niro's new documentary for HBO, titled Remembering the Artist: Robert De Niro, Sr. will discuss his deceased father's artwork and shine a light on the man who raised the Oscar-winner. An important aspect of De Niro's work is discussing his openly gay father's former struggles with his sexuality, a topic that he says he wishes he could have discussed with his father when he was alive. De Niro tells Out magazine:

It was my responsibility to make a documentary about him. I was always planning on doing it, but never did. Then Jane Rosenthal, my partner at Tribeca [Enterprises], said, “We should start doing that now.” It was not intended to be on HBO. It was just something I wanted to do... [For] my kids, I want them to stop and take a moment and realize that you sometimes have to do things now instead of later, because later may be 20 years from now — and that’s too late.

It's incredibly moving that De Niro is taking this step to honor his father both as an artist and as a person. It's not only an important personal step for De Niro, but it is also sets an example for children who may wish to get closer to their parents, whomever they are. De Niro's appreciation for his father's art grew later in life, and, sadly, he has to celebrate it after his death.

De Niro's journey reminds us how important it is to get to know our parents as people — as De Niro says, sometimes 20 years is too late to let the person know how much you appreciate them. Though the actor's reveal of his father's sexuality is a surprising one, it's certainly not all Robert De Niro, Sr. was — it's simply a piece of De Niro's father that he wish he could have discussed with him when he was alive. It's a lesson for us all — our parents won't always be there.

I'm already tearing up watching the trailer. Check it out below.

Tune in to Remembering the Artist: Robert De Niro, Sr. on June 9 on HBO.