Robert De Niro’s Ex-Employee Asks Court to Strike Claims She Binge-Watched ‘Friends’

By Brent Lang

LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – Graham Chase Robinson, an ex-employee of Robert De Niro who made headlines last summer after the “Raging Bull” star claimed she binge-watched “Friends” episodes on the job, is asking a court to dismiss his lawsuit against her.

Robinson later counter-sued De Niro, accusing him of gender discrimination and fostering an abusive working environment. After filing, she released tapes on which the actor can be heard haranguing her and calling her a “spoiled brat.”

In the motion filed this week, Robinson’s attorneys say De Niro’s suit should be dismissed or stayed until a final judgment is rendered on her claims. Their assertion is that De Niro’s company, Canal Productions, filed suit first in retaliation after learning that she was pursuing legal action. They also ask the court to strike certain allegations, namely the one that Robinson spent a four-day period in January watching 55 episodes of “.”

“These inflammatory accusations are scandalous and prejudicial — so much so that they ‘went viral,’” the motion reads. “The allegations are also irrelevant to Canal’s claims: there is no case law holding that purportedly watching television during work gives rise to liability under any of the legal theories Canal advances.”

Robinson is also asking the court to strike De Niro’s legal team’s allegations that she inaccurately reported her vacation days, taking “nearly half a year’s worth of vacation days on the sly.” Her attorneys claim the allegations are “inherently implausible.”

Robinson, who was an employee at Canal Productions from 2008 to 2018, sued De Niro for $12 million. The actor initially sued her for $6 million in damages. Her attorneys say that should be stricken for being “excessive.”

A spokesperson for De Niro did not immediately respond to a request for comment.