Robert De Niro is recovering from a devastating leg injury after filming new Martin Scorsese flick

Robert De Niro is recovering from a devastating leg injury after filming the new Martin Scorsese flick Killers of the Flower Moon.

The 77-year-old actor admitted ‘the pain was excruciating’ when he tore a leg muscle in a simple yet devastating accident while he was in Oklahoma to film.

De Niro recalled the ‘unexpected’ yet ‘manageable’ incident during a chat with IndieWire ahead of the Tribeca Film Festival. 

‘I tore my quad somehow,’ he said. ‘It’s just a simple stepping over something and I just went down. The pain was excruciating and now I have to get it fixed. 

‘But it happens, especially when you get older, you have to be prepared for unexpected things. But it’s manageable.’ 

He noted that his role in the upcoming film is fairly sedentary and doesn’t require a lot of movement, so production should go on as planned.

‘What I’m doing with Scorsese in Killers of the Flower Moon, I’m pretty much a sedentary character in a way,’ he said. ‘I don’t move around a lot, thank god. So we’ll manage. 

‘I just have to get the procedure done and keep it straight in a certain position and let it heal.’ 

De Niro boarded a flight from Oklahoma to New York City to see a doctor last week after the incident, according to TMZ. 

De Niro was already slated to have a few weeks off before the injury happened.

De Niro plays William Hale in the drama, which is based on a true story chronicled in David Grann’s book Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI.

The story follows a series of murders of wealthy Osage people in Osage County, Oklahoma, shortly after large oil deposits were discovered on their land.

Leonardo DiCaprio was originally slated to play the lead role, FBI agent Tom White who investigated the killings, but he lobbied to have his role changed.

Jesse Plemons came aboard to play White, while DiCaprio plays Ernest Burkhart, the nephew of De Niro’s character William Hale.

The cast also includes Tantoo Cardinal, Pat Healy, Scott Shepherd, Lily Gladstone and Sturgill Simpson. 

The film will be the 10th feature film De Niro and Scorsese will have worked on, a relationship that goes back to the early 1970s.

De Niro first starred in Scorsese’s 1973 film Mean Streets, which he followed up by playing the iconic Travis Bickle in 1976’s Best Picture nominee Taxi Driver.

He also starred in 1977’s New York, New York, 1980’s Raging Bull, 1982’s The King of Comedy, 1990’s Goodfellas, 1991’s Cape Fear, 1995’s Casino and 2019’s The Irishman.

De Niro has a number of projects in post-production including Randall Emmet’s directorial effort Wash Me In the River with John Malkovich and Jack Huston.

He also stars in an untitled David O. Russell project with Anya-Taylor Joy, Margot Robbie, Christian Bale and Zoe Saldana.

There are also projects such as Armageddon Time with Anne Hathaway, Cate Blanchett and Oscar Isaac in pre-production.