NBC's Williams pulls off De Niro interview

At the Tribeca Film Festival, Brian Williams attempted a challenge: interviewing Robert De Niro.

Williams sat down with the actor as part of Tribeca's "Directors Series" talks. De Niro is a famously difficult interviewee, but Williams was eager for a chance to face off with a personal idol, The Associated Press reports.

He was warned of De Niro's sphinx-like reputation. Introducing the event, Jane Rosenthal, who co-founded the film fest with De Niro and has long been a business partner, said she was surprised at Williams' request.

"Great idea, but have you seen Bob's interviews?" said Rosenthal, recalling her reply.

The "NBC Nightly News" anchorman said he wanted to interview De Niro "as a fan." While De Niro often answered Williams' questions with typical recalcitrance, the two managed a good conversation with only an occasional sigh from Williams.

At one point, attempts for a more conversational interaction broke down when De Niro, 67, stymied Williams. "Did I answer the question?" asked De Niro, when there hadn't been one.

But the two still had common ground. Asked if he watches his old movies when they air on TV, De Niro said he doesn't.

"I don't do that, Brian. I watch the news and I watch the 'Today' show," said De Niro, drawing a laugh from the crowd.

De Niro said it was actually TV that helped inspire him to be an actor. And he said TV is often on his mind when he's filming, adding: "Whenever I have a big dramatic scene, I always think: 'What are they going to do with this on "Saturday Night Live"?' "