After seemingly being outed by paparazzi and other tabloids, Robert De Niro‘s child Airyn De Niro is “stepping into her new identity” as she officially comes out as transgender at age 29.
RELATED: Wow! Robert De Niro Reveals He ‘Just Had A Baby’ At 79, Making Him A Dad Of 7!
Airyn De Niro, who now uses she/her pronouns, was born male as Aaron De Niro to actor Robert De Niro, 81, and actor and restauranteur Toukie Smith, 72. Airyn is also the twin to brother Julian De Niro. Although the De Niro twins have remained out of the spotlight as much as possible, on March 19, Airyn’s new identity was seemingly exposed.
In a new interview published by Them magazine on April 29, Airyn De Niro recalls being unknowingly captured in a paparazzi photo with long, pink locs, inspired by Halle Bailey‘s ‘Little Mermaid,’ while wearing black, ankle-length, block-heeled boots. The 29-year-old said while visiting her father at the Greenwich Hotel in New York City, she was photographed by paparazzi.
RELATED: Chelsea Handler Slams Al Pacino, 83, Robert De Niro, 79, Elon Musk, 51, & Alec Baldwin, 6: ‘The Horny Old Men Won’t Stop Spreading Their Seeds’
Shortly after, tabloids, notably the Daily Mail published her “new look” with the headline, “Robert De Niro’s nepo baby son shows off shock transformation with heels and pink hair in rare sighting.” The article, which sparked several others like it, went live twelve days before Trans Day of Visibility. Airyn said it all went down before she had the opportunity to come out to the public on her own terms.
She also said none of the outlets contacted her before publishing their articles, which contained incorrect information. For example: calling her a “nepo baby” despite her keeping a low profile and seeking her own success. She explained:
“I actually didn’t find out about the Daily Mail thing until like a week after it was posted. Not only did they get information wrong about me… They just sort of reminded me that people really don’t know anything about me. There’s a difference between being visible and being seen. I’ve been visible. I don’t think I’ve been seen yet.”
RELATED: Robert De Niro’s Grandson Leandro De Niro Rodriguez Passes Away At 19
Robert De Niro’s Child Airyn De Niro Recalls Growing Up Biracial, Feminine, And Bigger-Bodied
Speaking on her upbringing outside of the spotlight, Airyn said, “Obviously no parent is perfect. But I am grateful that both my parents agreed to keep me out of the limelight. They wanted it very private. They have told me they wanted me to have as much of a normal childhood as possible.”
She recalled growing up biracial and having issues navigating life because of her ethnicity. She said she was also ridiculed and excluded by peers for being “feminine,” “bigger-bodied,” and “different in ways she couldn’t yet describe.” Airyn explained:
“I always grew up a bigger-bodied person. Everybody else in the family [was] relatively thin or fit; I was not, so I sort of stood out like a sore thumb and there wasn’t anybody in my family that could relate to that experience. Growing up when people started hitting puberty and started liking each other… I never had that. I never had a boyfriend at a young age, even though looking back, do we really need to be dating in middle school? I was like, ‘Wow, these things signify I’m very unwanted. I’m not desirable. I’m not attractive like the other people, the other girls, the other boys.”
RELATED: Robert De Niro Tears Up As He Talks About Being As He Talks About Being An 80-Year-Old Dad To Infant Daughter
Robert De Niro’s Child Airyn De Niro Was Femme-Presenting In Middle School And Came Out As Gay In High School
In middle school, Airyn was femme-presenting. In high school, she officially came out as gay and the pressure to fit in worsened. She said:
“[Gay men were] ruthless and mean. I didn’t even fit that beauty standard, which is thin, white, muscular, or just super fit, masculine. I was always told I was too much of something or not enough of something growing up: Too big, not skinny enough. Not Black enough, not white enough. Too feminine, not masculine enough. It was never just, ‘You’re just right, just the way you are.’”
In November 2024, at age 29, Airyn began hormone therapy. She said she took the journey to maintain her femininity as she gets older. That, coupled with seeing other successful transgender women opening up about their transitions. In her interview, the self-proclaimed “late bloomer” nodded to Laverne Cox, Marsha P. Johnson, KeKe Palmer, Kat Graham, Jools Lebron, Michaela Jaé Rodriguez, Naomi Campbell, and Raven-Symoné, her grandma Mamie McDonald, and more. She explained:
“Trans women being honest and open, especially [in] public spaces like social media and getting to see them in their success… I’m like, you know what? Maybe it’s not too late for me. Maybe, I can start. I think a big part of [my transition] is also the influence Black women have had on me. I think stepping into this new identity, while also being more proud of my Blackness, makes me feel closer to them in some way.”
RELATED: Donald Trump Responds To Robert De Niro After The Actor Called Him A ‘Clown’
Robert De Niro’s Child Airyn De Niro Talks Goal To Create More Visibility For Black, Queer, Trans, And Bigger-Bodied People
Airyn De Niro also spoke on her goal to create more visibility in Hollywood for people like her. She said:
“I’d want to hopefully be an inspiration for at least one other person like me who is Black, who is queer, who’s not a size extra small. I’d want to see more trans women, more Black women who are maybe bigger-bodied or don’t fit the mold of super thin or heroin chic.
I want queer people of color and bigger-bodied people to have an Alex Consani. I want queer people of color and bigger-bodied people to have a Hunter Schafer. A part of me has always wanted to model and sort of follow my mom’s footsteps. Honestly, if I could be on the cover of Vogue with her or recreating one of her pictures, that would be a dream come true.
People of color and queer people definitely need more mental health advocacy and support. So I’m hoping I’m able to do that. The field originally was so catered to white cis hetero men — what they deem as wrong or right or mentally ill or whatever, that is from their lens. It’s really beneficial to work with a counselor or mental health professional who can relroate to you or intersects with some part of you.”
And when people see her, Airyn De Niro said she hopes they see “someone who is trying their hardest to heal from growing up not feeling good about themselves.” She added, “[And] in the process of that, trying to make other people feel good about themselves.”
RELATED: Robert De Niro Loses Planned Award Following Anti-Trump Comments
#Socialites, be sure to check out the post below, then leave us your thoughts in a comment after!
