Robert De Niro’s Daughter Airyn Comes Out as Transgender in Personal Interview

Robert De Niro’s daughter Airyn De Niro has come out as transgender. The aspiring actress, whose mother is Toukie Smith, opened up about her transition to Them magazine in a personal interview published April 29. Airyn, who shared that she grew up as a “bigger-bodied person,” revealed that she first came out as a gay man in high school. However, she still did not feel completely accepted. “[Gay men were] ruthless and mean. I didn’t even fit that beauty standard, which is thin, white, muscular, or just super fit, masculine. I was always told I was too much of something or not enough of something growing up: Too big, not skinny enough. Not Black enough, not white enough. Too feminine, not masculine enough. It was never just, ‘You’re just right, just the way you are,’” she said. The 29-year-old began taking hormone therapy last November. “Trans women being honest and open, especially [in] public spaces like social media and getting to see them in their success… I’m like, you know what? Maybe it’s not too late for me. Maybe I can start,” she shared. Airyn also spoke about how she was thankful her parents let her and twin Julian Henry De Niro grow up out of the public eye, telling the magazine, “Obviously no parent is perfect, but I am grateful that both my parents agreed to keep me out of the limelight. They wanted it very private. They have told me they wanted me to have as much of a normal childhood as possible.”