Robert De Niro Suing Former Employee For Binge-Watching 55 Episodes Of 'Friends' On Work Time
She's worked for De Niro since 2008.
getty What would you do if you worked for a celebrity? For any hardworking individual, you’d bust your butt to get things done, be honest about your weekly hours, and maybe even get a few benefits from working so closely with someone so rich and famous. But for one ex-employee of Robert De Niro, she’s finding herself in hot water.
Who is Chase Robinson? Robinson is the former Vice President of Production and Finance for Canal Productions. She served as De Niro’s assistant for the films Limitless, Killer Elite, and Silver Linings Playbook, and was paid a $300,000 salary!
Robinson is now being sued by De Niro’s production company for $6 million. And it’s basically for being a slacker while on the clock and abusing her position. The lawsuit is seeking repayment of all cash, goods, and stolen frequent flyer miles.
According to the lawsuit, Robinson spent “astronomical amounts of time” binge-watching 55 episodes of Friends on Netflix over a four-day period.
But she didn’t just watch Friends. Oh no. She also binged Arrested Development and Schitt’s Creek. Though it’s awful she did all this while working, the woman clearly has good taste in television shows.
The lawsuit states, “Watching shows on Netflix was not in any way part of or related to the duties and responsibilities of Robinson’s employment, and, on information and belief, was done for her personal entertainment, amusement and pleasure at times when she was being paid to work.”
Canal Productions also says she “loafed during work hours, binge-watching astounding hours of TV shows on Netflix,” and “redeemed pay for 96 days of ‘unused’ vacation,” worth about $70,000. “A review of Canal’s Netflix account, to which she had access, indicated Robinson spent astronomical amounts of time accessing these shows, not only on weekends and holidays,” the charges continued.
Robinson is also accused of spending money on the company’s card. She allegedly spent thousands on upscale hotels and dinners, and stole De Niro’s 3 million frequent flyer miles for personal trips and vacations, then transferring 5 million miles to her own account.
She apparently rang up bills of $12,696.65 at the Upper East Side Italian restaurant Paola’s, $8,923.20 at Dean & Deluca and Whole Foods, and $32,000 for taxis and Uber rides between May 2017 and this past spring. Page Six also claims that Robinson used the company’s American Express card for “lavish trips, floral arrangements, iPhones, Uber rides, a Louis Vuitton handbag, dogsitters, and pricey dinners.”
Due to her high ranking in the company, she was able to approve the costs and expenses. One of the expenses included a “business trip” in March 2018, which turned out to be for her friend’s birthday party. That trip cost $5,000 for a three-day trip.
“This lawsuit seeks economic damages from a disloyal employee who, despite being in a trusted position, repeatedly and methodically abused her position to misappropriate her employer’s funds and property for her personal gain,” the court filing reads.
Robinson left the company in April due to concerns about “corporate sabotage.” The lawsuit also claimed that she drafted a recommendation letter for herself, which De Niro refused to sign. Because, obviously.
Samantha Maffucci is an editor for YourTango who focuses on writing trending news and entertainment pieces. In her free time, you can find her obsessing about cats, wine, and all things Vanderpump Rules.