Drena De Niro, daughter of celebrated actor Robert De Niro, mourned the loss of her son, Leandro De Niro Rodriguez, who passed away at the young age of 19. Through an Instagram post on July 2, Drena, aged 51 at the time, shared an emotional tribute to her late son, alongside a photograph of him.
She expressed her boundless love for him and how he brought joy and purity to her life. Drena mentioned her profound grief and desire to be with him, also expressing her resolve to spread love in his memory.
Drena shares her son Leandro with artist Carlos Mare, and in her post, she expressed condolences to Carlos as well, saying, “I’m so sorry my baby, I’m so sorry @carlosmare. Rest in Peace and Eternal Paradise my darling boy.” Carlos Mare also left a tribute in the comments, expressing the immense joy Leandro brought them and the loss they endure, stating that Leandro is now in God’s care.
Notable celebrities, including Andy Cohen and Naomi Campbell, also extended their condolences to Drena and her family via comments on her post. Cohen wrote, “Drena I am so sad to hear about beautiful Leo. Sending you all my love,” while Campbell wrote, “Drena heartbroken for you…May the lord cover you and hold you in his arms, at this very sad time and loss… I love you, always here for you.”
Leandro had followed in the acting footsteps of his mother Drena and grandfather Robert De Niro. In 2018, he appeared in “A Star Is Born” alongside his mother, playing the role of the son of Dave Chappelle’s character George “Noodles” Stone. Additionally, Drena and Leandro had worked together in the films “The Collection” (2005) and “Cabaret Maxime” (2018).
As of the information provided in the article, Robert De Niro, who was 79 years old at that time, had not publicly commented on his grandson’s passing.
obert De Niro’s large blended family. He adopted Drena during his marriage to Diahnne Abbott. The couple, who divorced in 1988, also share a son, Raphael. Robert later had twins Julian and Aaron with Toukie Smith via surrogate in 1995. He then married Grace Hightower in 1997, with whom he shares a son, Elliot, and a daughter, Helen, born via surrogate in 2011. The marriage ended in 2018. Additionally, in May of the same year as Leandro’s passing, Robert De Niro revealed that he had become a father for the seventh time, welcoming a baby girl with his girlfriend, Tiffany Chen.
