Robert De Niro's Former Assistant Says He Subjected Her To Harassment And Abuse; Actor Responds

In a recent lawsuit, Graham Chase Robinson alleged that her former boss — the legendary actor Robert De Niro — subjected her to a series of abuses, including "creepy advances" and harassment. The actor's attorney, however, has responded and what he's got to say isn't very complimentary. So who is Robert De Niro's asssistant Graham Chase Robinson?

Robert De Niro is one of those actors whose name speaks for itself. Considered one of the greatest actors of the 20th century, he's currently enjoying a resurgence in popularity — and exposure to a whole new generation of fans — thanks to his role in Joker, opposite Joaquin Phoenix. The 76-year-old, who is a native of New York City, first came into the pop culture zeitgeist when he was cast as a young Vito Corleone in The Godfather Part II, for which he won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. But in addition to his roles in "gangster films," De Niro has appeared in comedies such as the Meet the Parents films and their subsequent sequels, as well as Analyze This and Midnight Run. He's also served as a director for such films as A Bronx Tale. 

But this latest #MeToo accusation has put Robert De Niro in the spotlight for all the wrong reasons. 

So let's look at what we know about Graham Chase Robinson — and whether her claims have any merit. 

1. She's suing Robert De Niro for $12 million. 

According to CBS News, Graham Chase Robinson is suing Robert De Niro for $12 million. The outlet reports that Robinson, who started working for De Niro when she was 25 years old, claims that De Niro subjected her to a hostile work environment and that he threatened to fire her all the time. Robinson also said that she finally decided she couldn't work for Robert De Niro anymore and told him that she was suing him for, amongst other things, harassment. 

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2. Graham Chase Robinson said that she was De Niro's "work wife," and was uncomfortable with it. 

"Graham Chase Robinson filed a lawsuit in US district court in Manhattan accusing De Niro of asking her “to scratch his back, button his shirts, fix his collars, tie his ties, and prod him awake when he was in bed” — making her effectively an “office wife” even as she was promoted. Robinson’s suit also said that he berated her, often while intoxicated, calling her a “b*tch” and a “brat”, and that he underpaid her compared with a male aide doing similar work," reports The Irish Times, who added that sexual discrimination is also at the crux of Robinson's lawsuit against De Niro.

3. But Robert De Niro has counter-sued. 

According to Variety, Robert De Niro has counter-sued Graham Chase Robinson for $6 million. In his counter-suit, he claims he terminated Robinson for failing to do her job, alleging — among other things — that rather than do what she was supposed to do for him, she'd binge-watch Netflix instead. He also claimed that she was embezzling money from his company. 

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4. Outlets have tried to get Graham Chase Robinson to comment on the case, but have been unsuccessful. 

The New York Post recently accosted Graham Chase Robinson outside her Park Avenue flat, hoping to get her to comment on the Robert De Niro case. However, despite their best efforts, she didn't release any additional comment. It remains to be seen if she'll do so in the future but for now, she'll be deferring to her attorney for comment. 

5. Graham Chase Robinson's attorney also said that Robert De Niro made sexually-charged comments to her client. 

"She attempted to endure the work environment as long as possible, but she did attempt to quit multiple times. And Mr. De Niro responded by promising things would get better and threatening her if she left,” Alexandra Harwin, the attorney for Graham Chase Robinson, said to CBS New York. "The 19-page lawsuit also states that De Niro made jokes about his Viagra prescription and asked her to do supposedly stereotypical female duties, such as cleaning his apartment and mending his clothes," the outlet continued. 

6. Robert DeN iro's attorney said the allegations were "absurd."

“The allegations made by Graham Chase Robinson against Robert De Niro are beyond absurd," said Tom Harvey, the attorney for Robert DeNiro, to USA Today. The outlet also added that "the August lawsuit against Chase alleges that she charged hundreds of dollars of personal expenses on the company credit card, submitted false information to be paid for vacation days she used, converted millions of Canal's frequent flier miles for her personal use and binge-watched Netflix shows during work."

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Bernadette Giacomazzo is an editor, writer, and photographer whose work has appeared in People, Teen Vogue, Us Weekly, The Source, XXL, HipHopDX, The Los Angeles Times, The New York Post, and more. She is also the author of The Uprising series. For more information about Bernadette Giacomazzo, click here.