He also gave his younger brother, Chris Cuomo, a hard time on 'The Late Show.'
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has the perfect celebrity pick in mind to play him in a movie about the coronavirus pandemic. The 62-year-old politician-turned-online sensation appeared on Thursday's The Late Show With Stephen Colbert, and talked about Dr. Anthony Fauci claiming dibs on Brad Pitt after the Oscar winner played the core member of the White House coronavirus task force on Saturday Night Live.
Colbert noted that his recent guest, Robert De Niro, had agreed to play Cuomo in a future film.
"I am a big De Niro fan. He is just phenomenal. The breadth of his ability, just look at all the roles he's played," Cuomo gushed over the 76-year-old actor. "He can do anything -- Deer Hunter, Cape Fear, he can do comedy, how about Taxi Driver?"
Cuomo even has plans to use one of De Niro's most iconic lines at his next press conference.
"I'm going to do Taxi Driver the next press conference when a reporter asks me a question -- 'You talkin' to me? You talkin' to me?'" he joked. "Oh boy, that would be a treat. He's a genius."
De Niro previously told Colbert, "I guess I'll play Cuomo. He's doing what a president should do."
In addition to De Niro, the politician also praised his late father, former New York Gov. Mario Cuomo, saying he'd be handling the coronavirus outbreak "better than I am."
"My father was the best. My father was always representative of our best selves," he said. "If our better angels needed a spokesperson, they would hire my father."
The governor noted that his father's wisdom guides him as he tries to keep the people of New York safe and informed.
"I still hear my father every day. His voice is still in my head and his love is still in my heart," he said. "He would be saying, 'Rise above, don't get in the gutter with them, don't let them pull you down. Don't go for the bait, rise above. This is a transcendent crisis, and it's not about you or your ego and your personality, who cares what they say, rise above. Lead people up.'"
Cuomo wasn't quite as complimentary of his younger brother, Chris Cuomo, who recently tied with him in a poll for "most desirable" New Yorker.
"My brother has to be disqualified because he's not eligible. He is married, so he's out," he insisted. "He's out of the competition, he's out of the running. So there it is, I win."
He also joked about his brother's recent haircut, implying it was his sister-in-law, Cristina Cuomo's, way of getting back at her husband for giving her the coronavirus.
"After he gave her the COVID virus, he told me that she forgave him. He then gave her the sheers to cut his hair, and she cut his hair like Delilah cut Samson's hair and she gave it all back to him," Andrew quipped. "That was a passive aggressive, still angry haircut. He has a shorter haircut, I told him it's like a prison haircut."
For more from the Cuomo brothers, watch the clip below:
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