How Robert De Niro Helped Bradley Cooper Cope with the Death of His Father

Robert De Niro has been an anchor for Bradley Cooper in more ways than one. At the Tribeca Film Festival Saturday night, the actors sat down for a talk about their careers, with Cooper sharing a handful of precious stories about the ways De Niro impacted his career and personal life.
The pair first worked together on the 2011 drama Limitless, then again on the 2012 drama Silver Linings Playbook, directed by David O. Russell. In between, Cooper suffered a huge personal loss when his father died after a bout with lung cancer. But as he revealed at the festival, getting to play De Niro’s son in Playbook inadvertently helped him cope with his father’s death.
“It’s probably the reason why I grew so close to you and love you so terribly as a friend,” Cooper began. “I got to say the word ‘dad’ all the time after my dad passed away, and I got to say it to you. It was this beautiful thing David allowed me to do and to be a part of. That movie, I have to say, was so special. And we all felt it every day on set. I owe David for life for that.”
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