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De Niro not so friendly on binge-watching Netflix

Posted On: Aug. 26, 2019 12:18 PM CST

De Niro not so friendly on binge-watching Netflix

Robert De Niro’s company is turning a cynical eye to a former employee, in the form of a $6 million lawsuit accusing her of embezzling money and binge-watching Netflix while on the job.

Canal Productions, the actor’s company, also accuses Chase Robinson of racking up exorbitant hotel and restaurant charges and using millions of De Niro’s frequent flyer miles for her personal trips, Variety magazine reported this month.

According to the suit, filed on Aug. 17 in state court in New York, Ms. Robinson as a vice president was paid a salary of $300,000 before she left the company in April, facing concerns about alleged “corporate sabotage,” the suit states.

Meanwhile, the company says she rarely came into the office, where allegedly she spent “astronomical amounts of time” watching Netflix during work hours. The lawsuit claims she watched 55 episodes of “Friends,” 20 episodes of “Arrested Development,” and 10 episodes of “Schitt’s Creek,” all the while ordering lunch from posh restaurants, charging meals on the company card, Variety reported.

“Watching shows on Netflix was not in any way part of or related to the duties and responsibilities of Robinson’s employment and, on information and belief, was done for her personal entertainment, amusement and pleasure at times when she was being paid to work,” the suit states, also alleging that Ms. Robinson made more than $50,000 in grocery store and transportation charges, also unrelated to her job.

In her resignation email in April, Ms. Robinson allegedly brushed off concerns about her spending and other issues as “ridiculous.” She later drafted a recommendation letter for herself, which Mr. De Niro refused to sign, the magazine reported.