Robert De Niro stripped of award after shouting at Trump supporters

Robert De Niro lost a prestigious award following an outburst against Donald Trump outside the courthouse where the former president was being tried.

De Niro was set to receive recognition from the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) at an event in Washington DC scheduled for the following week.

However, the 80-year-old Academy Award-winning actor will no longer be presented with the Leadership Foundation's Service to America Award by the group.

The organization, self-described as "bipartisan," expressed concerns that De Niro's presence at their event would divert attention from their mission and activities.

Last week, De Niro was involved in a heated altercation with Trump supporters, where he labeled the former president as a “loser” and referred to his followers as  “gangsters”.

He further commented, stating, “When Trump ran in 2016, it was like a joke.”

The actor went on to say, “this buffoon running for president? Naw, never could happen. We’d forgotten the lessons of history that showed us other clowns who weren’t taken seriously until they became vicious dictators.”

In a social media post, the ex-president retaliated, labeling the actor as a “wacko” and claimed he was afflicted with an “incurable case of Trump derangement syndrome”.

De Niro's outburst proved to be too overwhelming for the NAB, leading them to revoke the award.

In a statement, it expressed, “this event is proudly bipartisan, uniting those from across the political spectrum to celebrate the impactful work of local broadcasters and our partners.”

“While we strongly support the right of every American to exercise free speech and participate in civic engagement, it is clear that Mr De Niro’s recent high-profile activities will create a distraction from the philanthropic work that we were hoping to recognise.”

De Niro, a supporter of Joe Biden's fundraising efforts, refrained from criticizing the foundation for retracting the award.

“I support the work of the NAB Leadership Foundation and would like to express my appreciation and gratitude for what the Foundation has done and will continue to do for the good of us all, and I wish them well for their continued good work.”