Robert De Niro

Made films the shows talk about.

Wikidata Q36949: matched by corpus:resolve, told apart by the only person by that name on Wikidata.

Counted as other. The films the hosts said they were tied to, which the two lists below run through too: Star 80 (1983); Full Metal Jacket (1987); The Last Temptation of Christ (1988); Do the Right Thing (1989); The Player (1992); This Boy's Life (1993); Seven (1995); The Edge (1997); Lady in the Water (2006); The Departed (2006); Walter Winchell movie (unmade). Count them as director (3 films), actor (37 films), producer (1 film) instead.

Draws on

What the speakers say they, or a film of theirs, drew on. Each is a speaker's account: “the maker said so” when they report the maker's own words, “the host's read” when the read is theirs.

Alfred Hitchcock: 2 lines

lineage (lineage) · through Seven (1995), which they were tied to as what-if John Doe: Alfred Hitchcock ⇒ Seven (the host's read). Se7en is a Hitchcock movie in its pulling-your-chain structure of mystery, reveal and anxiety, and Hitchcock is Fincher's biggest influence.
“I think as much as this seems like a modern movie, it's also just completely a Hitchcock movie in so many ways.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Se7en’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Chris Ryan · 0:14:30 · Sean Fennessey (0.85 sure it was them)
craft (craft) · through The Player (1992), which they were tied to as recast what-if (Fred Ward part): Alfred Hitchcock ⇒ The Player (the host's read). Wesley notes the Hitchcock-like touches in the rattlesnake and police station scenes.
“Little Hitchcock homage, I feel like.”
The Rewatchables · 'The Player' With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Wesley Morris · 1:05:45 · unknown (0.30 sure it was them)

Alfred Hitchcock Presents: Shopping for Death: 1 line

lineage (inspiration) · through Do the Right Thing (1989), which they were tied to as actor Spike campaigned for (as Sal); declined: Alfred Hitchcock Presents: Shopping for Death ⇒ Do the Right Thing (the host's read). Spike got the idea after seeing the Hitchcock Presents episode where characters theorize hot weather increases violence.
“Spike Lee 1st got the idea for this film after watching the Alfred Hitchcock presents episode shopping for death”
The Rewatchables · ‘Do The Right Thing’ With Sean Fennessey and Wesley Morris · 1:06:09 · Sean Fennessey (0.85 sure it was them)

All That Jazz (1979): 1 line

lineage (cited influence) · through Seven (1995), which they were tied to as what-if John Doe: All That Jazz ⇒ Seven (the maker said so). A host recalls a Fincher film the show covered where he cited All That Jazz as an inspiration for the look, maybe Seven.
“where he cited how much of an inspiration all that jazz was for him for the look of the movie?”
Blank Check — Patreon · David Fincher Music Videos · 1:13:07 · unknown (0.30 sure it was them)

Barbara Hershey: 1 line

lineage (origin of project) · through The Last Temptation of Christ (1988), which they were tied to as considered for Jesus, declined: Barbara Hershey ⇒ The Last Temptation of Christ (the host's read). Hershey also planted the book in Scorsese's head and told him to let her audition as Mary Magdalene.
“But it's planted in his head by her.”
Blank Check with Griffin & David · The Last Temptation of Christ with Jamelle Bouie · 0:44:30 · David Sims (0.40 sure it was them)

Ben-Hur (1959): 1 line

unmapped (accent convention) · through The Last Temptation of Christ (1988), which they were tied to as considered for Jesus, declined: Ben-Hur ⇒ The Last Temptation of Christ (the host's read). Scorsese made the Romans British, as in Ben-Hur, with everyone else American.
“He said the big thing was to give let the Romans be British.”
Blank Check with Griffin & David · The Last Temptation of Christ with Jamelle Bouie · 1:02:57 · Griffin Newman (0.40 sure it was them)

Boxcar Bertha (1972): 1 line

unmapped (production method) · through The Last Temptation of Christ (1988), which they were tied to as considered for Jesus, declined: Boxcar Bertha ⇒ The Last Temptation of Christ (the maker said so). Scorsese's Corman-style Boxcar Bertha experience let him storyboard and time every shot to make Last Temptation cheaply.
“I never would have been able to make this movie if I didn't have my Corman background and experience a boxcar Bertha specifically”
Blank Check with Griffin & David · The Last Temptation of Christ with Jamelle Bouie · 0:54:52 · Griffin Newman (0.50 sure it was them)

Eleanor Bumpurs: 1 line

lineage (real-events inspiration) · through Do the Right Thing (1989), which they were tied to as actor Spike campaigned for (as Sal); declined: Eleanor Bumpurs ⇒ Do the Right Thing (the host's read). The film was inspired by Howard Beach and Eleanor Bumpers, plus a list of other deaths in 1980s New York.
“It was also inspired, as you mentioned, by the Howard Beach racial incident in Eleanor Bumpers.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Do The Right Thing’ With Sean Fennessey and Wesley Morris · 1:06:19 · Sean Fennessey (0.80 sure it was them)

Holocaust movie (Kubrick's unmade film): 1 line

career (career sequence) · through Full Metal Jacket (1987), which they were tied to as considered for Hartman: Holocaust movie (Kubrick's unmade film) ⇒ Full Metal Jacket (the host's read). Full Metal Jacket came out of Kubrick failing to crack a Holocaust movie, as Barry Lyndon came out of Napoleon.
“it does feel similar to Full Metal Jacket coming out of him trying to make a Holocaust movie.”
Blank Check — Patreon · Barry Lyndon with Karina Longworth (Ad-Free) · 0:23:33 · unknown (0.30 sure it was them)

Infernal Affairs (2002): 1 line

lineage (remake source) · through The Departed (2006), which they were tied to as turned down Sheen's part for The Good Shepherd: Infernal Affairs ⇒ The Departed (the host's read). The Departed is a remake of the Hong Kong film Infernal Affairs, which is tighter.
“It was called Infernal Affairs, the Hark Kong one?”
The Rewatchables · ‘The Departed’ With Bill Simmons and Chris Ryan · 0:59:09 · Chris Ryan (0.50 sure it was them)

Klute: 1 line

lineage (visual inspiration) · through Seven (1995), which they were tied to as what-if John Doe: Klute ⇒ Seven (the maker said so). The speaker watched Klute because Fincher and DP Darius Khondji cited it as an inspiration for Se7en's dark look and flashlight-led framing.
“I watched Clute over the weekend because I know that both Fincher and Darius Conji, the DP, had cited that as an inspiration”
Blank Check — Patreon · Se7en with Mike Mitchell & Nick Wiger (Ad-Free) · 2:38:58 · Nick Wiger or Mike Mitchell (unresolved) (0.30 sure it was them)

Lenny (1974): 1 line

craft (structure) · through Star 80 (1983), which they were tied to as Fosse's choice for Snyder (declined): Lenny ⇒ Star 80 (the host's read). Star 80's interview framing/superstructure echoes Lenny's, and Lenny is the origin of the Chevy-Chase-style voice.
“This movie, you have the interview, this sort of superstructure that he loves so much”
Blank Check with Griffin & David · Star 80 with Julie Klausner · 0:32:03 · Griffin Newman (0.40 sure it was them)

Marlon Brando: 1 line

people (acting lineage) · them, directly: Marlon Brando ⇒ Robert De Niro (the host's read). Brando laid the groundwork for De Niro's natural yet acrobatic style, which De Niro then took to an infinite level.
“Brando now has laid the groundwork for De Niro to be as naturally simplistic, but also acrobatic.”
Blank Check with Griffin & David · Raging Bull with David Krumholtz · 0:43:33 · David Krumholtz (0.60 sure it was them)

Nashville (1975): 1 line

craft (craft) · through The Player (1992), which they were tied to as recast what-if (Fred Ward part): Nashville ⇒ The Player (the host's read). Wesley says the tricks Altman uses in The Player, like famous people dropping into a space, are ones he used in Nashville.
“a lot of the tricks that he's using in the player, I mean, he uses in Nashville, right?”
The Rewatchables · 'The Player' With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Wesley Morris · 0:17:32 · Wesley Morris (0.85 sure it was them)

R. Lee Ermey: 1 line

lineage (source of the dialogue) · through Full Metal Jacket (1987), which they were tied to as considered for Hartman: R. Lee Ermey ⇒ Full Metal Jacket (the host's read). Per the dossier Hartman's insults came right from Ermey, whom Kubrick had write down what he screamed.
“No, obviously this guy is perfect and would write down everything he said because all the insults came right from him”
Blank Check — Patreon · Full Metal Jacket with Jon Gabrus (Ad-Free) · 1:05:50 · Griffin Newman (0.50 sure it was them)

Scarface (1983): 1 line

lineage (homage) · through The Departed (2006), which they were tied to as turned down Sheen's part for The Good Shepherd: Scarface ⇒ The Departed (the host's read). The film has references to classic gangster films like the original Scarface that feel like pastiche.
“there's a couple of references in this movie to classic gangster films like the original Scarface”
The Rewatchables · ‘The Departed’ With Bill Simmons and Chris Ryan · 0:45:24 · Chris Ryan (0.50 sure it was them)

Singin' in the Rain (1952): 1 line

lineage (lineage) · through The Player (1992), which they were tied to as recast what-if (Fred Ward part): Singin' in the Rain ⇒ The Player (the host's read). Sean says movies about movies go back long before The Player, e.g. Singin' in the Rain, but this one is far more inside the joke.
“Going back to singing in the rain.”
The Rewatchables · 'The Player' With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Wesley Morris · 0:04:08 · Sean Fennessey (0.70 sure it was them)

Sweet Charity (1969): 1 line

unmapped (technique) · through Star 80 (1983), which they were tied to as Fosse's choice for Snyder (declined): Sweet Charity ⇒ Star 80 (the host's read). Fosse's choreographic insert/isolation technique reappears in Star 80, applied to ugly material.
“There's even the, I mean, the whole fossy isolation of the body parts thing, right?”
Blank Check with Griffin & David · Star 80 with Julie Klausner · 0:33:58 · David Sims (0.40 sure it was them)

The Color of Money (1986): 1 line

career (career enabler) · through The Last Temptation of Christ (1988), which they were tied to as considered for Jesus, declined: The Color of Money ⇒ The Last Temptation of Christ (the host's read). The paycheck-gig hit stabilizes Scorsese's career and makes Last Temptation and Goodfellas possible.
“Must admit though, it is the guarantor that allows him to immediately then make. Last temptation of Christ in Goodfellas.”
Blank Check with Griffin & David · The Color of Money with Chris Ryan · 0:17:57 · unknown (0.30 sure it was them)

The Long Goodbye (1973): 1 line

lineage (lineage) · through The Player (1992), which they were tied to as recast what-if (Fred Ward part): The Long Goodbye ⇒ The Player (the host's read). Wesley reads Greta Scacchi's character as an echo of Nina van Pallandt's ice queen in The Long Goodbye, itself a riff on noir femmes fatales.
“that character is a an echo of another Altman character, the Nina Van Palant character in the longabai”
The Rewatchables · 'The Player' With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Wesley Morris · 1:07:08 · Wesley Morris (0.80 sure it was them)

The Robe (1953): 1 line

lineage (influence) · through The Last Temptation of Christ (1988), which they were tied to as considered for Jesus, declined: The Robe ⇒ The Last Temptation of Christ (the host's read). The Robe is the first Christ movie Scorsese remembers seeing.
“The 1st Christ movie he remembers seeing is the robe.”
Blank Check with Griffin & David · The Last Temptation of Christ with Jamelle Bouie · 0:45:07 · David Sims (0.50 sure it was them)

The Short-Timers (novel): 1 line

lineage (adaptation) · through Full Metal Jacket (1987), which they were tied to as considered for Hartman: The Short-Timers (novel) ⇒ Full Metal Jacket (the host's read). Kubrick's film is based on Gustav Hasford's novel and keeps its three-part structure.
“Stanley Kubrick's film, 1987, based on the novel, The Short Timers by Gustav Hasford.”
Blank Check — Patreon · Full Metal Jacket with Jon Gabrus (Ad-Free) · 0:25:08 · Griffin Newman (0.50 sure it was them)

Touch of Evil (1958): 1 line

craft (craft) · through The Player (1992), which they were tied to as recast what-if (Fred Ward part): Touch of Evil ⇒ The Player (the host's read). The Player's opening nods to Touch of Evil's tracking shot by having Fred Ward's character talk about it, then reveal he never watches foreign films.
“Fred Ward talking about the tracking shot and touch of evil, but then revealing that he never watches foreign films.”
The Rewatchables · 'The Player' With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Wesley Morris · 0:35:53 · Sean Fennessey (0.60 sure it was them)

Wartime Lies / Aryan Papers (unmade Kubrick project): 1 line

career (project that led to another) · through Full Metal Jacket (1987), which they were tied to as considered for Hartman: Wartime Lies / Aryan Papers (unmade Kubrick project) ⇒ Full Metal Jacket (the host's read). The speaker says Full Metal Jacket came out of Kubrick searching for the right Holocaust material.
“Full Mal Jack comes out of him searching for the right Holocaust material.”
Blank Check — Patreon · Eyes Wide Shut with David Ehrlich (Ad-Free) · 0:29:19 · unknown (0.30 sure it was them)

William Friedkin: 1 line

lineage (lineage) · through Seven (1995), which they were tied to as what-if John Doe: William Friedkin ⇒ Seven (the maker said so). Fincher drew from Friedkin and wanted it to feel like an episode of Cops.
“he's drawn from like Friedkin, but he's also, he's, he's referenced like how he wanted it to feel like an episode of cops.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Se7en’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Chris Ryan · 0:15:42 · Chris Ryan (0.50 sure it was them)

Drawn on by

What the speakers say drew on them or a film of theirs, marked the same way.

After Hours (1985): 3 lines

career (personal projection) · through The Last Temptation of Christ (1988), which they were tied to as considered for Jesus, declined: The Last Temptation of Christ ⇒ After Hours (the maker said so: Scorsese quoted in an oral history). Scorsese worked Kafka's Before the Law into the club doorman scene to reflect his frustration over Last Temptation.
“inspired by Franz Kafka's before the law. And Scorsese said the short story reflected his frustration toward the production of the Last Temptation of Christ.”
The Rewatchables · ‘After Hours’ with Bill Simmons and Sean Fennessey · 1:23:31 · Sean Fennessey (0.50 sure it was them)
unmapped (cause) · through The Last Temptation of Christ (1988), which they were tied to as considered for Jesus, declined: The Last Temptation of Christ ⇒ After Hours (the maker said so: a Scorsese quote on After Hours being a reaction to the Last Temptation ordeal). After Paramount collapsed Last Temptation, Scorsese wanted a cheap, personal film; After Hours is his reaction to the Hollywood ordeal.
“it's a reaction against my year and a half into Hollywood trying to get last temptation to Christ made.”
Blank Check with Griffin & David · After Hours with Alison Sivitz · 0:50:49 · unknown host (quoting Scorsese) (0.35 sure it was them)
unmapped (sliding door) · through The Last Temptation of Christ (1988), which they were tied to as considered for Jesus, declined: The Last Temptation of Christ ⇒ After Hours (the host's read). Paramount cancelling Last Temptation sent Scorsese to a small fast job; one of movie history's sliding doors.
“it is one of the massive sliding doors in movie history because him not making it leads to him making this movie”
The Rewatchables · ‘After Hours’ with Bill Simmons and Sean Fennessey · 0:17:03 · Sean Fennessey (0.60 sure it was them)

Fight Club (1999): 2 lines

career (career) · through Seven (1995), which they were tied to as what-if John Doe: Seven ⇒ Fight Club (the host's read). Without Se7en's power Fincher does not get to do The Game and Fight Club his way.
“I think without this movie, he doesn't go on this run”
The Rewatchables · ‘Se7en’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Chris Ryan · 1:27:28 · Sean Fennessey (0.55 sure it was them)
career (career lever) · through Seven (1995), which they were tied to as what-if John Doe: Seven ⇒ Fight Club (the host's read). Se7en's success is what let Fincher make the seemingly impossible Fight Club.
“But the fight club is him more being like, okay, guys, I know this seems impossible, but I made seven.”
Blank Check — Patreon · Se7en with Mike Mitchell & Nick Wiger (Ad-Free) · 1:05:55 · unknown (0.30 sure it was them)

The Game (1997): 2 lines

unmapped (R-rated proof) · through Seven (1995), which they were tied to as what-if John Doe: Seven ⇒ The Game (the host's read). Se7en's hit status as an R-rated film convinced the backers to fund The Game.
“I think convinced, um, people like, okay, like, you can make an R-rated movie a hit.”
Blank Check — Patreon · The Game with Brendan Hines (Ad-Free) · 0:33:16 · David Sims (0.40 sure it was them)
unmapped (commercial lead-in) · through Seven (1995), which they were tied to as what-if John Doe: Seven ⇒ The Game (the host's read). Se7en's success gave Fincher an absurd budget for The Game.
“this is better for me because now I can make this movie at an absurd budget.”
Blank Check — Patreon · The Game with Brendan Hines (Ad-Free) · 0:47:35 · David Sims (0.40 sure it was them)

25th Hour (2002): 1 line

lineage (callback) · through Do the Right Thing (1989), which they were tied to as actor Spike campaigned for (as Sal); declined: Do the Right Thing ⇒ 25th Hour (the host's read). 25th Hour repeats the racial slur montage as Ed Norton's mirror monologue; Wesley says the repeats made the original less effective for him but 25th Hour has greatness.
“There's a 25th hour version of that too.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Do The Right Thing’ With Sean Fennessey and Wesley Morris · 0:45:38 · Sean Fennessey (0.70 sure it was them)

8mm (1999): 1 line

lineage (rip-off) · through Seven (1995), which they were tied to as what-if John Doe: Seven ⇒ 8mm (the host's read). Calls 8mm Schumacher ripping off Se7en.
“8 millimeter is Schumacher ripping off seven.”
Blank Check — Patreon · The Game with Brendan Hines (Ad-Free) · 0:41:48 · unknown (0.40 sure it was them)

Cape Fear (1991): 1 line

industry (business deal) · through The Last Temptation of Christ (1988), which they were tied to as considered for Jesus, declined: The Last Temptation of Christ ⇒ Cape Fear (the host's read). Universal's deal to make Last Temptation obliged a bigger film later, resulting in the Spielberg swap and Cape Fear.
“it gets fear is a direct result of his deal with Universal for this month.”
Blank Check with Griffin & David · The Last Temptation of Christ with Jamelle Bouie · 2:00:50 · David Sims (0.40 sure it was them)

Dead Presidents (1995): 1 line

lineage (lineage) · through Full Metal Jacket (1987), which they were tied to as considered for Hartman: Full Metal Jacket ⇒ Dead Presidents (the maker said so: Lorenz Tate recalling the Hughes brothers' videotapes). Allen Hughes made a VHS of Vietnam scenes; Tate was assigned Full Metal Jacket, Apocalypse Now, Platoon.
“So I watched Full Metal Jacket.”
The Big Picture · 8. I Love America | Do We Get to Win This Time? · 0:50:43 · Lorenz Tate (0.80 sure it was them)

Inside Man (2006): 1 line

lineage (callback) · through Do the Right Thing (1989), which they were tied to as actor Spike campaigned for (as Sal); declined: Do the Right Thing ⇒ Inside Man (the host's read). In Inside Man the police provide Sal's Pizza to the hostages.
“In Lee's 2006 film Inside Man, the police provide Sal's Pizza to the hostages.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Do The Right Thing’ With Sean Fennessey and Wesley Morris · 1:15:17 · Sean Fennessey (0.80 sure it was them)

Jarhead (2005): 1 line

unmapped (generational template) · through Full Metal Jacket (1987), which they were tied to as considered for Hartman: Full Metal Jacket ⇒ Jarhead (the host's read). Jarhead is described as trying to be the Full Metal Jacket of the Iraq war generation.
“like jarhead feels like it's very much trying to be the full metal jacket.”
Blank Check — Patreon · Full Metal Jacket with Jon Gabrus (Ad-Free) · 0:27:21 · David Sims (0.55 sure it was them)

Jungle Fever (1991): 1 line

theme (thematic follow-up) · through Do the Right Thing (1989), which they were tied to as actor Spike campaigned for (as Sal); declined: Do the Right Thing ⇒ Jungle Fever (the host's read). Jungle Fever explored the Bensonhurst setting a couple of years later, rehearsing part of that story.
“which I think is explored in jungle fever a couple years later”
The Rewatchables · ‘Do The Right Thing’ With Sean Fennessey and Wesley Morris · 0:14:34 · Wesley Morris (0.70 sure it was them)

Leonardo DiCaprio: 1 line

lineage (influence) · them, directly: Robert De Niro ⇒ Leonardo DiCaprio (the maker said so: a story Leo tells). Leo met De Niro on This Boy's Life, watched every De Niro movie and got hip to Scorsese through them.
“He met De Niro working on this boy's life and he watched every De Niro movie and he really connected with the De Niro Scorsese movies.”
The Big Picture · The 25 Best Movies of the Century: No. 11 - 'The Wolf of Wall Street’ · 0:27:15 · unknown (0.40 sure it was them)

MTV Movie Awards Se7en parody: 1 line

unmapped (parody) · through Seven (1995), which they were tied to as what-if John Doe: Seven ⇒ MTV Movie Awards Se7en parody (the host's read). The MTV Movie Awards parodied the Se7en ending with William Shatner playing every role and the head in the box.
“And then Shatner's head is in the box and then he sings a song.”
Blank Check — Patreon · Se7en with Mike Mitchell & Nick Wiger (Ad-Free) · 2:34:40 · unknown (0.40 sure it was them)

Nine Inch Nails: 1 line

lineage (lineage) · through Seven (1995), which they were tied to as what-if John Doe: Seven ⇒ Nine Inch Nails (the host's read). Se7en caught industrial rock at its peak and led to Fincher-Reznor scores.
“Fincher and Rezner go on to make this incredible partnership”
The Rewatchables · ‘Se7en’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Chris Ryan · 0:55:04 · Sean Fennessey (0.45 sure it was them)

Quentin Tarantino: 1 line

unmapped (borrowed line) · through Do the Right Thing (1989), which they were tied to as actor Spike campaigned for (as Sal); declined: Do the Right Thing ⇒ Quentin Tarantino (the host's read). Sean says Tarantino lifted the 'shoot me in a dream, wake up and apologize' line from Do the Right Thing into Reservoir Dogs.
“you shoot me in a dream, you better wake up and apologize, which is something that I think Robin Harris says in the movie, which later appears in Reservoir Dogs”
The Rewatchables · ‘Do The Right Thing’ With Sean Fennessey and Wesley Morris · 0:50:46 · Sean Fennessey (0.85 sure it was them)

Red Hook Summer (2012): 1 line

lineage (pseudo-sequel) · through Do the Right Thing (1989), which they were tied to as actor Spike campaigned for (as Sal); declined: Do the Right Thing ⇒ Red Hook Summer (the host's read). Mookie reappears delivering for a Sal's that has relocated to Red Hook, though Spike insisted it was not a sequel.
“he made a movie called Red Hook Summer.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Do The Right Thing’ With Sean Fennessey and Wesley Morris · 0:19:03 · Sean Fennessey (0.70 sure it was them)

Saw (film series): 1 line

unmapped (borrowing) · through Seven (1995), which they were tied to as what-if John Doe: Seven ⇒ Saw (film series) (the host's read). Rewatching the Saw movies, the speaker was struck by how much they lifted from Se7en.
“I forgot how much saw stole.”
Blank Check — Patreon · Se7en with Mike Mitchell & Nick Wiger (Ad-Free) · 0:59:00 · David Sims (0.40 sure it was them)

The Batman (2022): 1 line

unmapped (borrowing) · through Seven (1995), which they were tied to as what-if John Doe: Seven ⇒ The Batman (the host's read). The speaker had forgotten how indebted The Batman is to Fincher, mostly to Se7en.
“I had forgotten just how indebted the Batman is to...”
Blank Check — Patreon · Se7en with Mike Mitchell & Nick Wiger (Ad-Free) · 1:28:34 · unknown (0.30 sure it was them)

The Larry Sanders Show (1992): 1 line

lineage (lineage) · through The Player (1992), which they were tied to as recast what-if (Fred Ward part): The Player ⇒ The Larry Sanders Show (the host's read). Bill asks whether The Player is ground zero for the meta-Hollywood strain that runs through Larry Sanders and Curb.
“Larry Sanders and Curb your enthusiasm and all these different things we've had over the 30 years.”
The Rewatchables · 'The Player' With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Wesley Morris · 0:03:46 · Bill Simmons (0.95 sure it was them)

True Detective (2014): 1 line

lineage (lineage) · through Seven (1995), which they were tied to as what-if John Doe: Seven ⇒ True Detective (the host's read). Se7en's influence shows in True Detective from the title sequence to the characters, though True Detective's first season flinches at the dark ending.
“you can see the influence of of 7 on things like True Detective from the title sequence to the characters.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Se7en’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Chris Ryan · 0:15:19 · Chris Ryan (0.55 sure it was them)

True Romance (1993): 1 line

unmapped (borrowed speech) · through Do the Right Thing (1989), which they were tied to as actor Spike campaigned for (as Sal); declined: Do the Right Thing ⇒ True Romance (the host's read). The Sicilians-and-Moors speech in True Romance echoes what Mookie says to Pino in Sal's.
“Well, Sicilians and and Africans and the Moors in that whole speech that appears in true romance, which is also something that Mookie essentially says to Pino”
The Rewatchables · ‘Do The Right Thing’ With Sean Fennessey and Wesley Morris · 0:51:06 · Sean Fennessey (0.80 sure it was them)

Wes Anderson: 1 line

lineage (influence) · through Do the Right Thing (1989), which they were tied to as actor Spike campaigned for (as Sal); declined: Do the Right Thing ⇒ Wes Anderson (the host's read). Direct address to camera (Mr. Senor Love Daddy and the like) was taken up by the whole indie revolution, Wes Anderson most of all.
“Using direct address into the camera as a style, which has been now jacked by basically the whole indie revolution that came after him.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Do The Right Thing’ With Sean Fennessey and Wesley Morris · 0:50:23 · Sean Fennessey (0.80 sure it was them)

What Just Happened (2008): 1 line

unmapped (dramatization) · through The Edge (1997), which they were tied to as almost cast lead (table read): The Edge ⇒ What Just Happened (the host's read). Barry Levinson's 2008 film, drawn from Art Linson's book, fictionalizes the making of The Edge, including the beard fight and De Niro.
“They made a movie based on Art Linson's book, and a lot of it is about making this stupid movie and a big part about him not shaving the beard”
The Rewatchables · ‘The Edge’ With Bill Simmons and Van Lathan · 1:35:23 · Bill Simmons (0.85 sure it was them)

Zodiac (2007): 1 line

unmapped (why Fincher was offered it) · through Seven (1995), which they were tied to as what-if John Doe: Seven ⇒ Zodiac (the host's read). Seven made Fincher the first choice for any serial-killer project, Zodiac included.
“Ever since he makes seven, if there's some serial killer movie, is getting sent it”
Blank Check — Patreon · Zodiac with Leslye Headland (Ad-Free) · 0:51:53 · Griffin Newman (0.50 sure it was them)

later crime thrillers and crime TV (unnamed): 1 line

lineage (genre influence) · through Seven (1995), which they were tied to as what-if John Doe: Seven ⇒ later crime thrillers and crime TV (unnamed) (the host's read). As an adult the speaker is less shocked by Se7en because everyone since took a page out of its book.
“I'm not as shocked by 7 because everyone took a page out of its book, of course.”
Blank Check — Patreon · Se7en with Mike Mitchell & Nick Wiger (Ad-Free) · 2:15:39 · Mike Mitchell (0.50 sure it was them)

What the speakers said they did

What was said about them, by kind

career (5)

career (career-comparison): Robert Duvall → Robert De Niro. Duvall phoning it in beats De Niro sleepwalking or Pacino just yelling.
“De Niro, when he's phoning it in, really is sleepwalking. Chino, when he's phoning it in, is just yelling.”
Blank Check with Griffin & David · Judging The Judge · 1:18:10 · Griffin Newman (0.40 sure it was them)
career (career): Robert De Niro → Rocky and Bullwinkle. De Niro's nadir: after a great run he began taking paychecks around 2000, starting with Rocky and Bullwinkle.
“But then in 2000, he just started taking paychecks and he did Rocky and Bullwinkle.”
The Rewatchables · A CR Month Mailbag! · 0:09:33 · unknown (0.40 sure it was them)
career (career): Robert De Niro → Dirty Grandpa. De Niro's later dirty-grandpa era of cheesy comedies, the 2016 Zac Efron film as the example.
“Dirty grandpa is a movie with Robert De Niro and Zach Efron, as the 2 leads.”
The Rewatchables · A CR Month Mailbag! · 0:10:01 · unknown (0.40 sure it was them)
career (career arc): Robert De Niro → Midnight Run. From Midnight Run through Goodfellas, This Boy's Life, Cape Fear and this film, De Niro played different parts each time.
“This is such a great De Niro stretch, basically, from Midnight Run.”
The Rewatchables · ‘A Bronx Tale’ With Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:34:12 · Sean Fennessey (0.40 sure it was them)
career (career context): Robert De Niro → The Irishman. De Niro's 21st-century highs include The Irishman, where he plays an interior role.
“he's wonderful in the Irishman. And the Irishman, he has kind of an odd role. It's a very interior role”
The Big Picture · ‘Killers of the Flower Moon’ Is Astounding · 1:08:54 · Sean Fennessey (0.50 sure it was them)

contrast (2)

contrast (contrast): Robert De Niro → Robert Altman. The hosts debate whether De Niro's preparation-heavy method fits Altman's improvisational process.
“I think that something about the way Altman works, I think, is probably counterproductive for De Niro for the way De Niro works.”
The Rewatchables · 'The Player' With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Wesley Morris · 1:19:34 · Wesley Morris (0.40 sure it was them)
contrast (contrast): Robert De Niro → Mark Wahlberg. De Niro wins the 'Mark Wahlberg Award' of the year, like Wahlberg's The Fighter: a quiet-hero producer-star who gets only a picture nomination.
“Wahlberg and the fighter.”
Blank Check — Patreon · The Fifth Annual Blank Check Awards with Joe Reid (Ad-Free) · 1:17:46 · Griffin Newman (0.40 sure it was them)

craft (1)

craft (craft): Robert De Niro → Midnight Run. Simmons calls De Niro the Michael Jordan of cigarette-smoking, citing Jimmy Conway and Jack Walsh in Midnight Run.
“the way Jack Walsh smoked the midnight run.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Margin Call’ With Bill Simmons, Ryen Russillo, and Brian Koppelman · 1:25:50 · Bill Simmons (0.75 sure it was them)

lineage (1)

lineage (influence): Leonardo DiCaprio → Robert De Niro. Leo met De Niro on This Boy's Life, watched every De Niro movie and got hip to Scorsese through them.
“He met De Niro working on this boy's life and he watched every De Niro movie and he really connected with the De Niro Scorsese movies.”
The Big Picture · The 25 Best Movies of the Century: No. 11 - 'The Wolf of Wall Street’ · 0:27:15 · unknown (0.40 sure it was them)

people (6)

people (acting triumvirate): Robert De Niro → Al Pacino. De Niro, Pacino and Hoffman are the three rewriting the rules of acting as ethnic American leads.
“I think there's a triumvirate.”
Blank Check with Griffin & David · Raging Bull with David Krumholtz · 0:19:39 · Griffin Newman or David Sims (0.40 sure it was them)
people (acting lineage): Robert De Niro → Marlon Brando. Brando laid the groundwork for De Niro's natural yet acrobatic style, which De Niro then took to an infinite level.
“Brando now has laid the groundwork for De Niro to be as naturally simplistic, but also acrobatic.”
Blank Check with Griffin & David · Raging Bull with David Krumholtz · 0:43:33 · David Krumholtz (0.60 sure it was them)
people (performance contrast): Robert De Niro → Heat. Even in Heat his intensity is a burning ember; here he is softer and the everyman.
“But this one, he really is the everyman.”
The Rewatchables · ‘A Bronx Tale’ With Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:35:08 · Chris Ryan (0.40 sure it was them)
people (reunion): Robert De Niro → Joe Pesci. De Niro and Pesci pass in the same scene without sharing one.
“We get De Niro and Pesci in the same scene, but not really.”
The Rewatchables · ‘A Bronx Tale’ With Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 1:02:56 · Bill Simmons (0.50 sure it was them)
people (counterfactual director): Robert De Niro → Martin Scorsese. If Scorsese directed, the film would be more thrilling but less breezy and easy to rewatch.
“If Martin Scorsese shoots the movie, it's fucking exciting.”
The Rewatchables · ‘A Bronx Tale’ With Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 1:40:21 · Sean Fennessey (0.60 sure it was them)
people (reunion): Leonardo DiCaprio → Robert De Niro. First on-screen pairing since This Boy's Life (1993), with Marvin's Room also a joint credit.
“since De Niro and Leo appeared on screen together, since this boy's life in 1993.”
The Big Picture · ‘Killers of the Flower Moon’ Is Astounding · 0:06:42 · Sean Fennessey (0.50 sure it was them)

programming (1)

programming (iconic pairing): Leonardo DiCaprio → Robert De Niro. Ryan predicts Rick and Cliff will be tied to Brad and Leo as Michael Corleone is to Pacino and LaMotta to De Niro.
“we will like associate Rick and Cliff with Brad and Leo the way we do, you know, Michael Corleone with Al Pacino or, you know, like Jake Lamano with Robert De Niro.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Once Upon a Time … in Hollywood’ Live From Sundance With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Chris Ryan · 0:04:40 · Chris Ryan (0.70 sure it was them)

theme (1)

theme (underplaying comparison): Peter Sellers → Robert De Niro. Speaker pairs Mandrake with De Niro's underplayed Jackie Brown as deceptively difficult acting.
“to actively play someone who's got so little going on is so deceptively difficult because you watch something like this, like Mandrake”
Blank Check — Patreon · Dr. Strangelove... with Sean Fennessey (Ad-Free) · 0:13:19 · Griffin Newman (0.60 sure it was them)

unmapped (6)

unmapped (discovery): Robert De Niro → Joe Pesci. De Niro saw Pesci in The Death Collector and felt they would have chemistry.
“De Niro had somehow seen the death collector on tape and was like, this guy's interesting.”
Blank Check with Griffin & David · Raging Bull with David Krumholtz · 1:07:02 · Griffin Newman or David Sims (0.40 sure it was them)
unmapped (white whale): Bob Fosse → Robert De Niro. Fosse wanted De Niro for Snyder and was attached to a Winchell film with him.
“a Walter Winchell movie that's going to star Robert De Niro, his big white whale at this point”
Blank Check with Griffin & David · Star 80 with Julie Klausner · 1:30:19 · Griffin Newman (0.50 sure it was them)
unmapped (joke): Robert De Niro → Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy. Ron Burgundy reference when toilet break is discussed.
“Ron Burgundy flew toward.”
The Rewatchables · ‘A Bronx Tale’ With Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 1:17:38 · unknown (0.10 sure it was them)
unmapped (signature obsessions): Martin Scorsese → Robert De Niro. Simmons sums up Scorsese as loving De Niro, the Stones, and people getting hit over the head with a glass in a bar.
“He loved Bob De Niro, called him Bob, the stones, and people getting hit over the head in a bar with a glass.”
The Rewatchables · ‘The Departed’ With Bill Simmons and Chris Ryan · 0:25:28 · Bill Simmons (0.65 sure it was them)
unmapped (self-positioning): Edward Norton → Robert De Niro. Norton was positioning himself as the new De Niro in the late 90s.
“positioning himself as like, I'm the new De Niro.”
Blank Check — Patreon · Fight Club with Alex Ross Perry (Ad-Free) · 1:17:44 · unknown (0.40 sure it was them)
unmapped (considered for Hartman): Robert De Niro → Full Metal Jacket. Kubrick considered De Niro and Ed Harris for Hartman.
“So Kubrick considered a number of actors to play Gunner Sergeant Hartman, Robert De Niro, which is interesting to imagine, Ed Harris, who probably would be good.”
Blank Check — Patreon · Full Metal Jacket with Jon Gabrus (Ad-Free) · 1:04:56 · Griffin Newman (0.50 sure it was them)

verdict (1)

verdict (verdict): Robert De Niro → The Irishman. De Niro wins the 'Mark Wahlberg Award': will a movie into existence, produce it, play the lead well, and let everyone else get nominated.
“De Niro wins the Mark Wahlberg Award for the year”
Blank Check — Patreon · The Fifth Annual Blank Check Awards with Joe Reid (Ad-Free) · 1:17:28 · Griffin Newman (0.45 sure it was them)

what-if (4)

what-if (casting what-if): Robert De Niro → Anthony Hopkins. De Niro went far down the road for the Hopkins part, including a table read, but kept worrying about the bear.
“They go really far down the road with De Niro.”
The Rewatchables · ‘The Edge’ With Bill Simmons and Van Lathan · 1:11:44 · Bill Simmons (0.85 sure it was them)
what-if (what-if): Robert De Niro → The Player. Bill proposes De Niro in the Fred Ward part, overqualified, as the right-era move after Goodfellas and Cape Fear.
“Could he have just played the Fred Ward part for like 4 scenes.”
The Rewatchables · 'The Player' With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Wesley Morris · 1:19:11 · Bill Simmons (0.70 sure it was them)
what-if (what-if): Kevin Spacey → Robert De Niro. An 80s De Niro, with Cape Fear and Taxi Driver in him, could have been John Doe.
“I think there's some kind of time frame from the 80s when De Niro could have been this guy”
The Rewatchables · ‘Se7en’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Chris Ryan · 0:46:28 · Bill Simmons (0.55 sure it was them)
what-if (casting what-if): Robert De Niro → Do the Right Thing. Spike campaigned for De Niro as Sal; Wesley argues his baggage would have tipped the film's equal-weighted balance and made it a different movie.
“Spike Lee campaigned for Robert De Niro as so.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Do The Right Thing’ With Sean Fennessey and Wesley Morris · 0:59:56 · Sean Fennessey (0.80 sure it was them)

Fun items about them

fun, about Robert De Niro: At the SAG Awards for Oppenheimer, Krumholtz found De Niro posing for fans outside the bathroom like a Disney mascot and saying cheese reflexively.
“With every fan picture, he reflexively says cheese.”
Blank Check with Griffin & David · Raging Bull with David Krumholtz · 1:39:11 · David Krumholtz (0.85 sure it was them)
fun, about Robert De Niro: Trump slammed De Niro as punch drunk for making one too many boxing pictures, to which the hosts reply with Raging Bull and Grudge Match.
“His slam on him was, oh, he's punch drunk.”
Blank Check with Griffin & David · Raging Bull with David Krumholtz · 1:41:59 · Griffin Newman or David Sims (0.35 sure it was them)
fun, about Robert De Niro: At the table read De Niro kept saying the bear concerned him; Bill does the Jimmy Conway voice.
“The bear still concerns me.”
The Rewatchables · ‘The Edge’ With Bill Simmons and Van Lathan · 1:12:53 · Bill Simmons (0.85 sure it was them)
fun, about Robert De Niro: Spike wanted De Niro for Sal but he declined; Wesley says De Niro's baggage would have tipped the film's equal balance and made Sal someone to root for.
“It becomes the movie about how Robert De Niro is a racist or something.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Do The Right Thing’ With Sean Fennessey and Wesley Morris · 1:00:08 · Wesley Morris (0.65 sure it was them)
fun, about Robert De Niro: William Hale opens a ballet studio and poses with ballerinas, played for laughs; the film treats him as simply Satan.
“He opens like a dance studio, the William Hale, like a ballet studio, and like is posing outside with all the ballerinas”
The Big Picture · ‘Killers of the Flower Moon’ Is Astounding · 1:09:55 · Amanda Dobbins (0.40 sure it was them)