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Robert De Niro Goes Anti-Vaccine, Promotes Debunked ‘Vaxxed’ Film

By Coburn Palmer
Published on: 05:44 PST, Apr 14, 2016

Robert De Niro spouted all sorts of anti-vaccine comments Wednesday on the Today show while promoting the film Vaxxed, which was pulled from this year’s Tribeca film festival because of the mounting controversy.

The Oscar winner was on the show to promote the Tribeca film festival, but instead spoke at length about his personal involvement with the movie Vaaxed and the supposed link between vaccines and autism, reports Fox News.

“I think the movie is something that people should see. I, as a parent of a child who has autism, am concerned. And I want to know the truth. I’m not anti-vaccine. I want safe vaccines.”

De Niro personally lobbied for the provocative Vaxxed movie to be included in the Tribeca film festival this year, but backed down after receiving an avalanche of criticism.

Vaxxed was made by discredited doctor Andrew Wakefield, who authored an often-quoted and now debunked study linking vaccines and their side affects with autism. In 2011, the British Medical Journal published findings showing Wakefield had conducted an elaborate fraud by falsifying data and he was barred from practicing medicine in the U.K.

The movie, VAXXED: From Cover-up to Catastrophe, is being screened at a number of small theaters in the United States and De Niro said every parent should go see the film and decide the truth for themselves.

De Niro, who has a son with autism, continues to question the existence of a link between vaccines and autism despite the many numerous studies on the subject and thinks people should see the movie and decide for themselves, reports Jezebel.

“There’s something there that people aren’t addressing. And for me to get so upset here, on the Today show, with you guys, means there’s something there. That’s all I wanted, for the movie to be seen. You can make your own judgment.”

De Niro reiterated his desire to finally find the truth about vaccines and their side effects saying the movie helps move the discussion along and concerned parents should make sure to watch it, reports The Guardian.

“There’s a lot of information about things that are happening with the CDC, the pharmaceutical companies, there’s a lot of things that are not said.”

The decision to remove the film from the Tribeca festival was hailed by the scientific community as a step in the right direction, as President of the Autism Science Foundation Alison Singer told The Guardian.

“It showed the weight and heft of the scientific community when it comes together. It’s wonderful that we are now seeing science triumph.”

Robert De Niro is only the latest actor to join the anti-vaccine movement, which continues to urge parents to avoid vaccinating their children despite strong objections from the scientific community.

Reality star Tila Tequila, who made headlines recently with her crazy Twitter rants, joined the movement in 2015 with her lengthy Facebook post claiming parents who vaccinated their children were committing what amounted to “mass genocide.”

The medical community continues to deny the existence of any link between valuable vaccines given to children and autism. The United States saw its first death from measles in 12 years in 2015 when the anti-vaxxer movement started to gain headway.

Do you plan on seeing the Vaxxed film promoted by Robert De Niro?

Photo Credit: AP Photo/Kin Cheung

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