Hollywood Icon Robert Redford Dies at 89
Written by b87fm on 09/16/2025
Robert Redford, the two-time Academy Award winner whose name became synonymous with American cinema for more than half a century, has died at his home in Provo, Utah. He was 89. His publicist, Cindi Berger of Rogers & Cowan PMK, confirmed the news to The New York Times on Tuesday (September 16).
Redford reportedly passed away in his sleep. No cause of death has been released.
For over six decades, Redford carved out one of the most remarkable legacies in film history—an actor, director, and cultural architect whose work bridged the golden age of Hollywood and the modern era. His filmography reads like a greatest-hits collection: Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969), The Sting (1973), All the President’s Men (1976), The Natural (1984), Out of Africa (1985).
His accolades matched his influence: two Academy Awards, five Golden Globes, the Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award, Kennedy Center Honors, and the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
But Redford was never just a movie star—he was a storyteller who believed deeply in the craft.
“The idea of being an actor was to have a sense of freedom,” he told Collider in 2019. “You were free to be, to act as someone else, if you were paying attention to the people around you. You had a chance to be an artist, because acting is an art form.”
Beyond the screen, Redford left an indelible mark on the industry by founding the Sundance Film Festival, creating a global stage for independent filmmakers that continues to define new generations of cinema.
His final acting appearance was a quiet cameo as a chess player in AMC’s Dark Winds, a series he also helped shepherd as executive producer across 20 episodes from 2022 to 2025. It was a fitting close for a man who spent his career not only in front of the camera but behind it, championing voices and stories that might otherwise have gone unheard.
Robert Redford’s passing leaves behind more than a body of work—it leaves a legacy of artistry, independence, and vision that shaped what American film could be.
