Hollywood and the tech world were shaken when legendary actor Robert De Niro filed a lawsuit against billionaire Elon Musk, seeking up to $100 million in damages. The lawsuit, submitted to the California Supreme Court in late February 2025, came shortly after the 97th Academy Awards, where De Niro was notably absent for the first time in decades. His absence followed a controversial statement by Musk, which allegedly led to De Niro being banned from the event and removed from all Oscar nominations.

The conflict began in mid-January when Musk tweeted, calling De Niro a “fake moral man” and urging the Oscars to remove those who “only know how to preach.” This came after De Niro criticized Musk’s political influence in an interview. Shortly after, the Academy barred De Niro from attending and excluded him from the 2025 nominations, despite his leading role in a well-received film. De Niro’s legal team claims Musk’s remarks pressured the Academy into making these decisions, resulting in significant financial and reputational harm to the 81-year-old actor.