Robert De Niro is embroiled in a legal battle with his former assistant, and claims that prior to filing his initial lawsuit, the woman tried to blackmail him into meeting a list of demands.

According to legal documents obtained by TMZ, De Niro told the court that Graham Chase Robinson sent him an email in August 2019, claiming that she would disclose personal details about his life. The actor believes that this threat was triggered by him preparing to sue her for misusing the company credit card and watching over 50 episodes of Friends while on the clock.

De Niro also claims that Robinson had an undisclosed list of demands that she wanted him to meet. In a separate email, Robinson allegedly told De Niro that she would write a memoir containing personal information about him if her demands weren't met.

In October, news surfaced that De Niro was being countersued by Robinson. In her lawsuit, Robinson accused De Niro of making "sexually charged comments to her," being verbally abusive, and assigning her to "stereotypically female duties." She also included a voicemail in which De Niro hurled insults at her because she didn't answer the phone.

De Niro admits to sending the voicemail, but he insists that Robinson is only countersuing him because he pointed out her unprofessional behavior. He denies making any sexual comments to Robinson and De Niro's attorney, Tom Harvey, described the assistant's accusations as "beyond absurd."