'Wake up Punchy!' Trump hits back at Robert De Niro
- Published
US President Donald Trump has lashed out at Hollywood actor Robert De Niro after the star denounced him with an expletive-laden speech at an awards ceremony.
De Niro, who has previously said he would like to punch the president, received a standing ovation for his verbal attack at the Tony Awards.
But in a tweet, Mr Trump described the actor as "a very Low IQ individual".
"I watched him... and truly believe he may be 'punch-drunk'," he said.
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The Oscar-winning actor has starred in a number of boxing films, including Raging Bull, and he pulled no punches during the live television broadcast of Sunday night's Tony Awards.
Before introducing a performance from Bruce Springsteen, De Niro used the f-word in reference to Donald Trump a number of times, which were bleeped out by the CBS network broadcasting the ceremony.
Addressing Bruce Springsteen, De Niro said: "Even more important in these perilous times, you rock the vote. Always fighting for, in your own words, truth, transparency and integrity in government. Boy do we need that now."
His comments garnered a huge amount of reaction on social media.
The actor has long been a vocal critic of the president. He released a video during the 2016 election campaign in which he railed against Mr Trump, calling him "an idiot" and a "national disaster".
He said he would move to Italy if Mr Trump was elected, and the town where his great-grandparents lived offered him "refuge" when this happened.
"I'm going to probably have to move there," De Niro joked on the day of the result.
Meryl Streep criticised Donald Trump and defended Hollywood, foreigners and the press
This is not the first time Mr Trump has responded to a Hollywood star attacking him during a speech.
Last year, Meryl Streep strongly criticised him at the Golden Globes and said his actions legitimised bullying.
But Mr Trump hit back by labelling her "one of the most overrated actresses in Hollywood".
"She is a Hillary flunky who lost big," he added of the three-time Oscar-winner.
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