The world was saddened by the news of the passing of Leandro De Niro Rodriguez, the grandson of renowned actor Robert De Niro, as announced by his mother, Drena De Niro, in a heartfelt Instagram post on Sunday night.
Robert De Niro grandson, Leandro, dies: What’s the cause of death?
In an emotional tribute, the 51-year-old actress expressed her profound grief, saying,
“My beautiful sweet angel. 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. I wish I was with you right now. I wish I was with you.”
While the cause of Leandro’s untimely death was not disclosed in the post, Drena conveyed her devastation and the irreplaceable void left by his departure.
She vowed to carry on and share the love and light that Leandro brought into her life.
“You were so deeply loved and appreciated, and I wish that love alone could have saved you,” she expressed, concluding her tribute by sending her son to “Rest in Peace and Eternal Paradise,” and tagging Leandro’s artist father, Carlos Mare.
Following the announcement, friends and loved ones flooded Drena’s comments section with condolences and messages of support. Director Lee Daniels offered his support, writing, “Drena, may GOD keep you in his arms,” while actress Rosie Perez expressed her shock and love, saying, “Shocked! I’m so sorry! We are all here for you!!! I love you too much!”
Drena had previously shared precious moments with Leandro on Mother’s Day, posting endearing photos of the two together. Captioning the post, she wrote, “Today was a good day.”
Drena, the oldest of Robert De Niro’s seven children, is the daughter of his first wife, actress Diahnne Abbott. In May 2023, it was confirmed that De Niro’s girlfriend, Tiffany Chen, had given birth to their seventh child, a baby girl named Gia.
According to a spokesperson for the NYPD’s Deputy Commissioner of Public Information, authorities received a distress call at around 14:23, on Sunday regarding an unconscious and unresponsive 18-year-old male, per PEOPLE.
Despite the efforts of emergency medical services, the young man was pronounced deceased at the scene. Robert De Niro’s representative has not yet provided a comment regarding the tragic loss.