Drena De Niro, the daughter of Robert De Niro, has announced the death of her son, Leandro.
Leandro De Niro Rodriguez was an actor whose credits included the 2018 films A Star is Born and Cabaret Maxime. He was reportedly 19 years old.
On Sunday (2 July), Drena, 51, shared a picture of Leandro with a caption paying tribute to his life.
“My beautiful sweet angel,” her message began, “I have loved you beyond words or description from the moment I felt you in my belly. You have been my joy, my heart and all that was ever pure and real in my life.”
She continued: “I wish I was with you right now. I wish I was with you. I don’t know how to live without you but I’ll try to go on and spread the love and light that you so made me feel in getting to be your mama.
“You were so deeply loved and appreciated and I wish that love alone could have saved you.”
Drena, also an actor, finished off her message by saying “I’m so sorry” to both Leandro and his father, artist Carlos Mare.
In response to her heartfelt post, Drena has received messages of support from friends, including other people in the entertainment industry.
White Guys Can’t Jump actor Rosie Perez commented: “Shocked! I’m so sorry! We are all here for you!!! I love you too much!”
Lana Parrilla, known for her work on Once Upon a Time, wrote: “Drena, I’m so deeply sorry. Sending you an enormous amount of love, prayers and strength. May God be with you and all who love your darling boy.”
Mare shared a plain black square on his Instagram profile without any caption, to which people have responded with messages of condolence and well wishes.
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Robert De Niro has since released his own statement, saying that he was “deeply distressed” by the loss of his “beloved grandson”.
Robert De Niro and Drena De Niro in 2016— (Getty Images)
In recent months, the Taxi Driver actor has spoken openly about family and fatherhood, as he welcomed his seventh child at age 79.
During an interview ahead of the release of the film About My Father, in which he plays a dad meeting his son’s soon-to-be fiancée’s family, De Niro was asked what it takes to “be a good father”.
He responded: “Sometimes, I don’t think people really know what being a good father is,” before adding: “Well, they do. You know you have your responsibility.
“Look, it’s a mystery, it’s a lot of excitement,” he said. “But it’s scary and you do your best.”
