Amy Poehler Says Robert De Niro's Stand Made Her Cry

Amy Poehler put Robert De Niro in tears Tuesday while thanking him for speaking out against President Donald Trump and his administration. The conversation happened on her podcast, Good Hang. She told the actor she wanted to thank him personally for doing what he does and speaking up about where the world stands right now.

"There's a lot of people that are asked to speak truth to power," Poehler explained. "They're usually members of the margins. They are people that are young, don't really have as much currency or a footing as other people. It's often people of color. It's often women." She contrasted this with De Niro, noting his age and status made his actions feel different.

"To see a person like yourself," she said, "it reminds me... the best way I can describe it is when it's like if someone's giving a terrible speech at a wedding, and they're ruining the wedding, and the wedding is America and there's another adult who says like, 'We don't talk like that. That's not how you're supposed to treat people. This is insane.'" She added that his stance made everyone feel safe.

De Niro grew teary as he thanked her for her words. The actress told him he was standing up for many people who lack the power he possesses. "It's true. It is," she said. "There's not a lot of men who, in your position, who do that, and White men of a certain age... have a ton of power and don't use that responsibility in a way that they could."

De Niro told Poehler it was upsetting to see what happened in the United States. He called the situation crazy but argued that being blatant about issues is better because such events will happen again. "This guy will influence people, and they'll come up, and they'll say, 'Well, I can do it this way or that way,'" he stated. "And we have to always be on guard with what's happening now." He insisted that people must fight even when hope feels gone.

Christian Toto, editor of Hollywood in Toto, responded to the interview for Fox News Digital. He called Poehler one of their most talented comic actresses and praised her work on Parks and Recreation. However, he suggested she lacks cultural awareness compared to most celebrities.

"What Robert De Niro has done over the last decade is nothing less than beclown himself over all things Trump," Toto wrote in his statement. "His ill-informed, one-note attacks on the president are embarrassing." He argued that De Niro raised no discourse level and using every bully pulpit to rage against a political leader made many look askance at his career.

"He's neither brave nor inspired," Toto continued. "He's simply regurgitating what all his peers think and say. And many say what he says, but often in a slightly more coherent tone." He concluded that De Niro should know better and noted Poehler should understand how badly the Oscar winner's ravings land with the public.

During a February 2026 interview on Nicolle Wallace's podcast The Best People, De Niro became emotional about the state of the country. Wallace asked the 83-year-old actor what he worried about for New York under the ongoing Trump administration after he accused officials of disrespecting law enforcement institutions. He voiced concern that a campaign of retribution against people in New York would happen, such as sending in ICE agents.

"People have to resist, resist, resist, resist, resist," De Niro warned Wallace. "That's the only way. There's no magic. There's no nothing." He insisted people are not going away even if Trump dies from illness or something else. He added that parts of that movement remain and called that part scary.

It has to be neutralized by the people." That is what she said, setting the tone for a conversation that spiraled quickly into politics again after recalling a 1981 Academy Award speech.

Robert De Niro stood before his peers at the Oscars that year and thanked everyone he worked with. He spoke of continually lifting people up around him. When Wallace pressed him on why he emphasized this point so heavily, the actor did not stay on the topic of film for long.

"You have to," he said, starting to cry during their talk in June. "You have to lift people up. You have to bring them together. Period." He insisted that you cannot divide people and win that way. It is a no-win situation if you try to tear a community apart.

The actor made it clear then that he cannot love an America led by Donald Trump. His words carried weight because they came from someone who has seen the industry up close for decades. The shift from cinema to civic duty was stark and sudden.

Access to these moments feels limited now, as much of what happens stays behind closed doors or gets filtered through media lenses that distort reality. We need direct accounts like this one to see things clearly without spin.