Robert De Niro Champions Nobu Hospitality’s Global Expansion at 83

The 83-year-old Academy Award-winning actor is still helping guide the worldwide expansion of Nobu Hospitality, the $1.3 billion restaurant and hotel empire he co-founded three decades ago. But rather than pull back from public life, De Niro is actively supporting new luxury projects himself in Egypt and the UK as the brand’s chief creative protector and location selector.

Robert De Niro, 83, continues to push Nobu Hospitality aggressively, the $1.3 billion global empire he co-founded with Chef Nobu Matsuhisa and producer Meir Teper. De Niro is personally involved in approving international locations and is now overseeing new luxury hotel, wellness, and residential openings in Egypt, Manchester, and the UK countryside, citing a deep commitment to upholding the brand’s culinary and operational quality.

De Niro’s involvement goes well beyond your standard celebrity endorsement. “De Niro is the ultimate judge of international openings,” Meir Teper said. “We follow his vision,” Teper said, adding that De Niro judges potential locations with a simple, personal yardstick: “Would I like to walk into that restaurant in that particular place?”

That instinct-driven approach has proven very resilient. In the 30 years since the first Nobu opened in New York’s Tribeca neighborhood in 1994, only five Nobu restaurants have closed. This is a remarkably strong survival rate in the hospitality industry, where around half of all restaurants in major cities like London fail within two years of opening.

The brand is in the middle of a massive expansion across continents. De Niro visited to promote three upcoming Nobu Hotel & Residences projects in Egypt, including a North Coast restaurant already open and phased resort launches in Cairo over the next five years.

Nobu is building a 246-meter high-rise in Manchester, UK, which will contain a hotel, restaurant and 452 branded residences. It’s also moving into the wellness market with Nobu Woolfox, a countryside retreat due to open next year on an estate near Rutland. The group is also looking at a third London site, exclusively dedicated to luxury branded residences, not a traditional hotel.

Industry watchers often ask why De Niro spends so much time promoting high-end real estate and Japanese-Peruvian cuisine, given his legendary six-decade acting career and estimated personal net worth of $500 million.

In a recent interview with City A.M., De Niro said his dedication stems from a sense of creative ownership. “I like it, and I’m very protective of it. I’m part of the creative,” De Niro said. “We all want to make sure we keep the quality and all that.” That’s it. That is the secret.

Hollywood doesn’t give De Niro the kind of control the hospitality empire does, a public relations expert says. Nobu allows De Niro to choose where he shows up and what gets his name, as acting parts naturally become rarer for actors in their eighties. “The business makes acting optional, and at his age, optional is perhaps the only kind of work worth doing,” said PR strategist Mark Borkowski.

De Niro’s continued involvement underscores the enduring appeal of “placemaking” in luxury real estate. Cities and developers are increasingly looking to the Nobu brand to add credibility and cachet to developing luxury destinations. De Niro’s active role also departs from traditional retirement expectations in the entertainment industry, and shows how legacy brands can keep an aging cultural icon creatively and financially relevant.

Nobu Hospitality will complete plans for its third London property, this time a hotel with branded luxury residences. The Manchester skyscraper is currently under construction and is scheduled for completion in 2031. The Nobu Woolfox wellness retreat in Rutland is due to open its doors to guests in 2027.