Political divisions around Trump have strained relationships across the country, and Hollywood has been no exception. The entertainment industry is largely known for supporting liberal politics, while celebrities who back conservative figures often face criticism or isolation. Schneider has been a vocal Trump supporter, while De Niro is one of the former president’s most outspoken critics.
According to Schneider, the encounter happened during Saturday Night Live’s 50th anniversary special earlier this year. In an interview with The Epoch Times, Schneider said he noticed De Niro sitting a couple of rows ahead of him and hoped the night would pass without politics coming up.
Schneider explained that he didn’t want to spoil De Niro’s evening because of his own political views — and he also didn’t want the celebration ruined for himself. But as the night wound down and people crowded into tighter spaces, avoiding the topic became impossible.
Schneider said he bumped into De Niro, who turned around and bluntly asked him, “How could you support that schmuck?” According to Schneider, it was clear De Niro was ready to launch into a heated argument.
Instead of debating, Schneider made a different choice.
“You can choose not to have conflict,” he said. Rather than pushing back, he simply responded, “I love you.”
Schneider said the unexpected reply immediately defused the tension. Looking back, he considers it one of his better moments.
“It’s what needed to happen,” he said, adding that constant fighting and “cancel culture” won’t solve anything. “When I say ‘we,’ I mean we as a society.”
The moment was especially notable given the two actors’ shared past. Before Trump entered politics, he and Schneider both appeared in Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, where Schneider played a bellman at the Plaza Hotel and Trump made a brief cameo.
Schneider formally left the Democratic Party in 2013, years before Trump ran for president. He voted for Trump in 2016 and later endorsed him during the 2024 campaign after Robert F. Kennedy Jr. suspended his own run.
The actor has previously said his political views have come at a cost. Schneider has claimed he’s been somewhat blacklisted in Hollywood and told The Daily Mail last year that he has likely lost friends because of politics.
In his latest comments, Schneider said constant political battles won’t move the country forward. In his view, progress will only come when people with opposing beliefs find some common ground — or at least choose understanding over anger.
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