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’
Robert De Niro’s rumored retaliation against taxi driver Travis Bickle in Uber ad draws criticism from the film’s screenwriter: ‘Why Bob would do this is beyond my calculation’
- The actor’s 80-year-old representative denied that he is playing Bickle again or using a line from a movie
- Uber confirmed that De Niro has an ad campaign in Britain that will be rolled out soon
- Bickle stands out as one of De Niro’s signature roles in an unparalleled career
Amid speculation that Robert De Niro will reprise his iconic role of taxi driver Travis Bickle for an Uber ad campaign in Britain, the film’s screenwriter questioned the move on social media.
Paul Schrader, 77, started working on it Facebook on Wednesday he posted his comment on an item from the site Hollywood elsewhere titled “80-Year-Old DeNiro Is Meaningless in the Context of Travis Bickle.”
Schrader wrote in response to the piece: “Ouch. Why Bob would do this is beyond my comprehension. But I haven’t seen it. If I’m lucky, that will never happen.’
De Niro was seen filming an ad for Uber in London on Thursday, opposite actor Asa Butterfield.
Stan Rosenfield, a representative for the actor, said De Niro, 80, would not reprise the role of the social outcast from the 1976 film directed by Martin Scorsese; nor would he use Bickle’s line from the film: “You talkin’ to me?”
The latest: Amid speculation that Robert De Niro, 80, will reprise his iconic role of taxi driver Travis Bickle for an Uber ad campaign in Britain, 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 said The Hollywood Reporter.
Uber has released a statement confirming De Niro’s presence in an ad campaign set to roll out in the coming months.
“We are filming with Robert De Niro in London for a new Uber UK campaign, launching later this year,” the rideshare company said. Variety.
Taxi Driver, which hit theaters in February 1976, starred Jodie Foster, Cybill Shepherd, Albert Brooks, Diahnne Abbott and the late Peter Boyle.
The film followed the Bickle character, a mentally disturbed loner cab driver in New York City, through a series of interactions and relationships that were forcibly created.
The film, which was nominated for four Academy Awards – including Best Picture and Best Actor for De Niro – has remained a cultural highlight, 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 Best Actor for his portrayal of 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 and posted his comment on 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 taxi driver in New York City, through a series of interactions and relationships that were forcibly created.
De Niro is one of several celebrities Uber has hired to promote its company in recent years, as the company also ran ads featuring Gwyneth Paltrow, Sarah Silverman, Trevor Noah, Jennifer Coolidge and Nicholas Braun.
De Niro and Scorsese are teaming up again – it’s their tenth film together – on the highly anticipated crime Killers of the Flower Moon.
The period piece, set in the 1920s, also stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Lily Gladstone, as well as Jesse Plemons, Tantoo Cardinal, John Lithgow and Brendan Fraser. The film can be seen in cinemas from October 20.