Filmmaker Rob Reiner on Wednesday slammed actor Robert De Niro for his profane jabs at President Donald Trump during the Tony Awards, saying those comments only help the president.
"You're helping Trump by saying 'F--- Trump,' because he can say 'Look at these people, these elitists,'" Reiner told The Hill's "Rising" co-hosts Krystal Ball and Buck Sexton.
"There's a very fine line between energizing the base and energizing the other side," Reiner said.
De Niro, a staunch Trump critic, dropped a couple of F-bombs in describing Trump during the awards show last Sunday, and urged the audience to vote in November. Trump on Tuesday retorted, calling the Oscar-winning actor "very low IQ" and "punch drunk."
Reiner, who has been making the media rounds to promote his new film "Shock and Awe," has consistently taken jabs at Trump. But he said De Niro's approach wasn't tactful.
"Everybody is entitled to free speech, they can say whatever they want, but I don't think that is particularly helpful for those of us who don't want to see Trump in office or continue to be in office," he said in a separate interview with Fox News.
© 2026 Newsmax. All rights reserved.