Robert De Niro sparked romance rumours with a mystery woman as they walked hand-in-hand on the coast of Côte d’Azur, France on Tuesday.
The Hollywood superstar, 78, who is in a bitter divorce battle with his estranged wife Grace Hightower, left luxe Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc to head out for the day on a boat with his female companion.
The iconic actor cut a casual figure during his vacation on the French Riviera, donning a light blue oversized polo top and khaki slacks.
Mystery woman: Robert De Niro sparked romance rumours with a mystery woman as they walked hand-in-hand on the coast of Côte d’Azur, France on Tuesday
Robert kept things comfortable in a pair of black slider sandals and shielded himself from the sun in a navy blue flat cap.
His female companion, meanwhile, looked elegant in a cream maxi dress which boasted bright orange floral embroidery on the skirt.
The raven-haired beauty carried her essentials in a red quilted purse and protected her eyes from the Mediterranean sun with light-tinted sunglasses.
Enigma: The Hollywood superstar was spotted cosying up to the enigmatic brunette as they left the luxe Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc by boat
Turbulent love life: Robert, 78, is in a bitter divorce battle with his estranged wife Grace Hightower, 66, (pictured in 2018)
MailOnline has contacted Robert’s representatives for comment.
De Niro seemed in good spirits on the trip with his companion, despite needing some support to jump on board the vessel – likely due to his recent leg injury while on location of Martin Scorsese’s Killers Of The Flower Moon earlier this year.
A representative of De Niro told Page Six in May: ‘De Niro injured his quadriceps muscle which will be treated medically in New York’.
The rep also said that his injury would not affect the production schedule of the Western true crime thriller, which also stars Leonardo DiCaprio.
Support needed: De Niro seemed in good spirits on the trip, despite needing some support to jump on board the vessel
Holiday style: He kept things comfortable in a pair of black slider sandals while his female companion looked elegant in a cream maxi dress
Helping hand: Robert needed a helping hand likely due to his recent leg injury while on location of Martin Scorsese’s Killers Of The Flower Moon
On Saturday, the New York native was seen walking without his leg brace – for the first time since being treated for his injury in May.
It is not clear whether De Niro was wearing his brace once again whilst holidaying in France on Tuesday.
Robert’s outing comes amid his torturous divorce battle with ex-wife Grace.
The ex-spouses have been locked in a divorce battle since December 2018.
Summer style: The raven beauty carried her essentials in a red quilted purse and protected her eyes from the Mediterranean sun with light-tinted sunglasses
In April, a judge ruled that his ex-wife, 66, should receive $1 million annually and that the couple will split the proceeds after selling their $20 million home.
Robert De Niro and Grace were married in 1997, split in 1999, then got back together, renewed their vows in 2004 before he filed for divorce in 2018.
Initially the pair fought over custody of their nine-year-old child but now the arguments are over money and property.
Hightower’s average monthly spend was $215,000 a month on credit cards and $160,000 in cash. De Niro’s attorney, Caroline Krauss, claims the financial strain means the actor is running out of money.
Making the most of the sunshine: The pair enjoyed pals for a day out at sea
She said the coronavirus pandemic led to a drying up of work projects for the Hollywood star.
Months earlier, De Niro earned $5 million for acting in Martin Scorsese’s hit gangster flick, The Irishman. He also received ‘tens of millions of dollars’ through a federal coronavirus relief program.
Hightower claims that De Niro is worth $500 million, but his attorney Caroline Krauss says that his estranged wife’s extravagant lifestyle is making things worse.
In 2019 alone, she reportedly spent $1.67 million (£1.2 million), most of it on a $1.2 million (£860,000) diamond from a high-end New York jewellers.
On top of Grace’s rocketing financial demands, De Niro’s attorney revealed the actor owes millions in unpaid taxes. She said the income from his next two films will be devoted to paying off this debt, which in 2015 was revealed to be $6.4 million (£4.6 million).
Naturally, the Hightower camp hasn’t taken all this sitting down. Her lawyer, Kevin McDonough, countered that his client was owed payments to ‘maintain the status quo’ lifestyle she enjoyed with De Niro during their marriage.
Before this, he was married to actress Diahnne Abbott, but the pair divorced in 1988.
Robert has six children; Drena, 49, Raphael, 44, Helen Grace, nine, Elliot, 23, Julian Henry, 25, and Aaron Kendrick, 25.
Exes: Robert De Niro and Grace were married in 1997, split in 1999, then got back together, renewed their vows in 2004 before he filed for divorce in 2018 (pictured 2018)