Robert De Niro Explains Difference Between ‘Boludo’ and ‘Pelotudo’ — Considered ‘Honorary’ Argentine

If you’re looking to brighten up your Friday afternoon, then look no further than this video of actor Robert De Niro, 80, explaining Argentine slang. Did we ever think our worlds would collide and we would one day watch De Niro say “pelotudo”? No, actually:

If you’re thinking, “What dimension is this?” right now, you’re not alone. As you can see in the clip aired at the International Film Festival in San Sebastián, Spain, the “Taxi Driver” icon gets the slang almost too right. Is De Niro secretly Argentine? What is happening?

“‘Boludo’ and ‘pelotudo’ are two key words if you ever go to Buenos Aires [Argentina],” the 80-year-old actor says in the video. “They are insults. ‘Boludo’ is softer and friendlier, you can say it without being offensive, even affectionate.”

“To a friend, you can say, ‘Che, boludo’ as a greeting” De Niro hilariously notes. And then… things get even weirder.

Why does the actor know so much about Argentine slang, you may ask? Well, we dug up all the reasons— and it’s no wonder some people just named him an honorary Argentine.

This is probably the reason De Niro knows so much about Argentine slang

In the laugh-out-loud video that just made us question everything, De Niro continues: “‘Boludo’ literally means you have big balls.” Okay, then!

“Then there is ‘pelotudo,’ another insult, but this one is heavier,” the “Intern” actor described. “It also means you have big and heavy balls, but it is clearly much more aggressive than ‘boludo.'” Well, at least he has all the facts straight!

So, ahem, apart from the meaning of these words — why does the star know so much about them? Well, it might have to do with his appearance in an upcoming Argentine Hulu series titled “Nada.”

As you can see in the trailer for the show, De Niro stars as Vincent, the friend of main character Manuel Tamayo Prats, a food critic from Buenos Aires.

Airing October 11 on Hulu, the series mainly follows protagonist Manuel, but De Niro appears as a special guest in the last episode.

In the trailer, Manuel asks Vincent to come to Buenos Aires for the presentation of his new book. Suddenly, we see both actors walking through the Argentine capital, De Niro drinking mate and calling it “fuerte,” and yes, the iconic New York-born actor saying “Che, boludo.”

Okay, it’s all starting to make sense now.

It turns out that Buenos Aires is actually one of the actor’s favorite cities

After watching the trailer for “Nada,” we feel a lot less confused about why De Niro knows so much Argentine slang.

That being said, the actor may have learned words like “boludo” and “pelotudo” much before filming “Nada” in Buenos Aires. In fact, De Niro has famously loved the capital city for many years.

De Niro told Condé Nast Traveller in 2019 that his list of favorite cities includes Buenos Aires. He explained, “I like Paris, and Buenos Aires runs it close — that is an absolutely beautiful city.” Still, at the time, he asserted that nothing beats New York. Well, we’ll take it!

Later in that same interview, the actor spoke about the “just magical” qualities of Iguazu Falls, which borders Argentina. As De Niro described, he spent time near the waterfalls while filming his 1986 movie “The Mission.”

As per the New York Times, the movie was filmed in “picturesque locations” in both Colombia and Argentina.

As one X user shares, they will henceforth welcome De Niro to Argentina with open arms:

Another said that they “never thought” De Niro would know so much about Argentine culture — but they’re loving it:

And now, we present to you a photo of Robert De Niro dancing the tango: