Robert De Niro Trashes Donald Trump with Jeffrey Epstein Jibe on Stephen Colbert's Penultimate Episode of 'The Late Show'
Robert De Niro slammed Donald Trump during his appearance on Stephen Colbert's penultimate episode of ‘The Late Show.'
May 21 2026, Published 4:31 p.m. ET
Robert De Niro made a surprise appearance on Stephen Colbert's penultimate episode of The Late Show — and used the opportunity to lay into Donald Trump.
RadarOnline.com can reveal the legendary actor joined Aubrey Plaza and Martha Stewart on Wednesday night's lineup, having recently condemned the president's "monstrous acts."
Swapping Roles With Host
De Niro and Colbert swapped places with the actor asking the questions.
The unusual format saw each celebrity briefly step in as guest host while Colbert, 62, sat on the sofa answering random questions thrown at him.
Among the questions was one from De Niro, who appeared more than happy to take a swipe at Trump during the segment.
The Oscar-winning actor, 82, asked Colbert: "What number were you thinking of?"
Colbert replied: "There's a hint as to what the answer is, because whenever somebody answers the question and gives the wrong answer, I always say no; and when I give the right answer, which has happened at least twice — Meryl Streep and Ethan Hawke guessed correctly - and Ethan Hawke goes immediately, 'I know what it is. It’s three.' That’s the number I was thinking of."
Epstein Files Dig At Trump
De Niro's gag about Trump sparked laughter from both host and audience.
But De Niro then turned the joke political with a dig aimed directly at Trump. "OK," he replied. "Because I thought it would have been two million point five, or two and a half million.
"That’s the number of Epstein files Trump still hasn’t released." The joke was met with huge cheers and applause from the audience, while Colbert burst out laughing on the sofa.
De Niro has long been a critic of Trump and has repeatedly attacked the president publicly over the years.
Colbert has also repeatedly made jokes about the president.
In March, De Niro appeared as a special guest on the No Kings 3 Kick-Off Call on March 19 to discuss strategies for the upcoming nationwide protests that took place against Donald Trump's administration on March 28.
Trump's Government 'Scares Me'
De Niro recently told of his fears over Trump's administration.
During the call, De Niro shared the thing that really "scares" him about Trump and his administration, as he detailed some of the "monstrous things" the 79-year-old has done.
Speaking to viewers, the Taxi Driver actor said: "I've played plenty of tough, scary guys in the movies — but you know what really scares the hell out of me? What the government, this government, our government, is trying to do is take away our right to vote."
Continuing, De Niro added, looking directly at the camera: "They're trying every trick in the book, and the Constitution be damned. You see what they're trying to pull, right?"
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De Niro was not shy in venting his anger at the Trump administration.
The veteran New Yorker then named the acts that the Trump administration has committed, as he listed "nationalizing elections, hijacking the states' voter rolls, making everyone re-register with original birth certificates, passports, and other documents," as well as putting "Trump's private army," supposedly meaning the National Guard and ICE "on the streets to intimidate voters."
De Niro also called out Trump for "declaring another one of his phony emergencies so that he has an excuse to cancel the elections altogether," along with "ending voting by mail, seizing voting machines, the list goes on and on."
