How to Dress Like Robert De Niro
Actor Robert De Niro is famous for his tough-guy roles throughout his film career. He is known for bucking the system and setting new standards with directors like Martin Scorsese, Michael Cimino, and Francis Ford Coppola. He earned two Academy Awards and nine nominations.
De Niro has also helped shape new fashion styles. He's often seen in perfectly tailored suits and crisp dress shirts, leaving a lasting impact on fashion for years...
Robert De Niro's Signature Style
Robert De Niro's signature style blends classic sophistication with a laid-back, effortless edge. Known for his sharp tailoring and understated elegance, he often pairs well-fitted suits with simple accessories, like sleek watches or minimalistic bracelets, which add personality without overwhelming the look.
De Niro frequently wears ties and bowties paired with cufflinks and pocket squares, each accessory adding a refined touch to his outfits. His timeless style favours clean lines and muted colours and balances formal and casual elements.
How to Dress Like Robert De Niro in the Movies
Robert De Niro's movie wardrobe perfectly blends timeless style with rugged charisma. His outfits reflect the characters and eras while maintaining his signature understated elegance. Here's how to emulate the iconic style from some of his most famous roles.
1. The Godfather Part II (1974)
Here, we can see one example when he tries to "convince" a landlord to evict a widow who asks Vito for help. He wears a brown wool Chesterfield overcoat with a black-and-white pinstripe waistcoat underneath, buttoned high over a contrasting blue pointed collar and placket shirt. He also wears a light grey silk cravat tie with a square printed pattern, which is the outfit's focus — a relatively understated look, but one that holds its own against the landlord speaking with him.
When Vito visits Sicily on that fateful day to meet with Don Ciccio, he wears a bespoke brown woollen suit with many custom features. This suit showcases classic Italian men's fashion and his new comfort with money and power. Vito is fully capable of exacting revenge on his family's killer.
The suit was designed by Van Runkle, made by Western Costume Co, and tailored for Robert De Niro. It featured various obscure vintage features not generally found on modern suits, such as short, wide squat peak lapels typical of the 1920s, welt breast pockets that slant toward the middle alongside his hip jacket pockets, and welted and slanted more than usual. If anything, the woollen suit shows how foreign Vito is to the natural clime of Sicily and serves (figuratively and practically) to hide his true identity and intent to kill Don Ciccio.
2. Taxi Driver (1976)
Scorsese made this visceral film about Vietnam veteran Travis Bickle and his descent into madness. Bickle's wardrobe style changes throughout the movie, reflecting how unhinged he becomes.
As a regular taxi driver whose insomnia has him take up cab driving, he first wears a versatile and functional surplus khaki tanker jacket. It is socially and stylistically acceptable in regular civilian life yet also a throwback to his days in the army. He also wears flannel shirts but adds flair to his outfit with a large cowboy-style buckled belt and cowboy boots.
However, when he wants to step it up a notch, like on a date with Betsy, he relies on a red maroon blazer with notch lapels, which is somewhat in keeping with the era's style.
He doffs his work jacket and unbuttons his flannels when interacting with unsavoury individuals, which foreshadows the tipping point for his next stylistic change.
When he decides to go all out and cuts his hair into a mohawk, he switches his work jacket for an even more aggressive M-65 olive drab field jacket, indicating he is going past the point of no return, spiralling into madness and has nothing to lose from taking names as he careens haphazardly toward the end of the film. This look laid the foundations of the punk style that many others have since tried to emulate, with the same nihilistic attitude that De Niro brought to the look.
3. Casino (1995)
De Niro portrays casino mogul Sam "Ace" Rothstein in this Martin Scorsese crime epic set in the 1970s. Tasked by the Chicago mob with running the Tangiers casino in Las Vegas, De Niro looks the part of a casino mogul. Wearing more than 70 different outfits throughout the film, De Niro's character, Ace, ranges in style from flat-out flamboyant to deceivingly subtle.
Another example is a finely checked Glen plaid blue, light grey, and gold suit with a coral windowpane overcheck. Note the ludicrously notched wide lapels to offset their width. Such an elaborate and densely patterned suit would be versatile with his loud but monochrome dress shirts and ties, like the sky blue shirt, matching blue tie, and pocket square he wears.
One of the best looks is the first suit we see Ace wear in the film—an apricot-coloured linen suit jacket with the same broad, notched lapels he favours with his other suits. The outfit features light-coloured slacks, a matching pastel pink silk dress shirt and tie, and a champagne yellow pocket square.
4. The Irishman (2019)
In this extraordinary three-and-a-half-hour-long gangster epic, De Niro plays Frank Sheeran. The film chronicles his rise from a World War 2 veteran working as a truck driver to a trusted mob enforcer. Director Scorsese wanted De Niro's wardrobe direction to move from the striking style he used in his previous crime films to a more understated style. The costume department researched the wardrobe of the real-life personalities in Sheeran's biography, I Heard You Paint Houses, by Charles Brandt.
Initially, Sheeran wears a fleece-lined leather bomber jacket with a cloth peak cap to serve as his de facto "uniform" alongside flannel shirts of various checker patterns and grey flannel slacks. This look sometimes changes as the story progresses, from featuring a scarf to a woollen beanie hat to a fedora while he's on jobs.
In one instance, Sheeran wears a brown-flecked suit when he receives a fateful call, and then he wears it again throughout the rest of the film. The suit jacket has narrow, notched lapels, welted breasts, and low hip pockets with the flaps tucked in to show the jetting. The sleeves are roped at the shoulders and finished with three buttons on each cuff. For pants, he wears double reverse-pleated trousers. He pairs this suit with various skinny ties, such as a gold and red tie.
During the trial, his character wears a three-piece wool twill suit in charcoal grey, which is in line with the sombre mood of the trial. The suit jacket has wider notched lapels, and the shoulders are now fully padded. He wears a diagonally striped blue, grey, white, and black tie.
And there you have it — four stylish examples from De Niro's illustrious career that you can emulate or modify to suit your tastes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Robert De Niro method act?
Yes, Robert De Niro is known for his method acting, fully immersing himself in his roles through intense preparation and research.
How many outfits did Robert De Niro wear at the Casino?
In Casino, Robert De Niro wore over 70 outfits, reflecting his character's evolution throughout the film.
How do you dress casually like a gentleman?
To dress casually like a gentleman, focus on well-fitted, timeless pieces like tailored jeans, a crisp shirt, and smart shoes while avoiding overly flashy or casual items.
What is Robert De Niro's signature look?
Robert De Niro's signature look combines sharp suits, tailored dress shirts, and understated accessories, often with a rugged, no-nonsense vibe.
What are Robert De Niro's best films?
Some of Robert De Niro's best films include Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, Goodfellas, The Godfather Part II, and Casino.
