Robert De Niro’s daughter is stepping into the spotlight for the first time to share her trans journey…
Her parents tried to keep her away from the public eye growing up in order to ensure a normal childhood. Now Airyn De Niro, daughter of Academy Award winner Robert De Niro, is introducing herself to the world, coming out as transgender and sharing her journey.
Born in 1995, Airyn and twin brother Julian, are children from De Niro’s relationship with model Toukie Smith. Keeping a low-profile for years, Airyn was thrust into the spotlight this past March when she was spotted visiting her father at Greenwich Hotel.
Articles appeared in tabloids the Daily Mail and Hello! disrupting her life. They referred to her as a “nepo baby” and started commenting on her appearance, comparing her current image with archived photos of her pre-transition. These publications essentially outed her, something she found out almost a week later.
“Not only did they get information wrong about me…they just sort of reminded me that people really don’t know anything about me,” she told Them in her first interview.
Now Airyn is taking control of the narrative, opening up about her childhood, family life and finding her queerness. “There’s a difference between being visible and being seen,” Airyn says. “I’ve been visible. I don’t think I’ve been seen yet.”
She discusses her journey growing up, coming out as a gay man and trying to belong. She recalls the struggles to fit in with peers as a femme, bigger-bodied and biracial individual. “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.’” she continues, adding she is now more proud of her Blackness and embraced her femininity.
In November, she began hormone therapy. While femme-presenting since her schooldays, she wanted to maintain that femininity as she aged. “Who wants to be an old man?” she tells Them.
This was combined with seeing trailblazing trans women sharing their own journeys. “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.”
When speaking about her home life, she shares how her father wanted them [her and her twin] to find their own path, which is a reason why tabloids proclaiming her as a ‘nepo baby’ were bothersome. “I would want [success] to happen on my own merit,” she shares.
And that is exactly what she is doing. An aspiring voice actor and model, she is also working towards becoming a mental health counselor. She even admits to auditioning for Hunter Schafer’s role in the hit series Euphoria.
Airyn wants to do things on her own terms, but hopes one day to share the spotlight with her famous family. “A part of me has always wanted to model and sort of follow my mom’s footsteps.”
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