Actor and director Robert Redford dies aged 89

Actor and director Robert Redford, acclaimed for films including Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid, All The President’s Men and The Sting, has died aged 89.

Redford, who was known for his activism, as well as his dashing good looks, also directed films such as Ordinary People, for which he won an Oscar, and A River Runs Through It.

A statement from his publicist Cindi Berger, chairman and chief executive of talent agency Rogers and Cowan PMK, said: “Robert Redford passed away on September 16, 2025, at his home at Sundance in the mountains of Utah – the place he loved, surrounded by those he loved.

“He will be missed greatly. The family requests privacy.”

Redford was a Hollywood golden boy in the 1970s, after his leading roles in Barefoot In The Park, with Jane Fonda, and Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid, in which he starred opposite Paul Newman.

He was nominated for an Oscar for his role in 1973’s The Sting, which reunited him with Newman, and starred opposite Faye Dunaway in Three Days Of The Condor and Barbra Streisand in The Way We Were, before taking on the role of Washington Post journalist Bob Woodward in Watergate film All The President’s Men in 1976, opposite Dustin Hoffman as Carl Bernstein.

But Redford started to eschew his leading man status and turned his hand to directing, winning an Oscar for his directorial debut Ordinary People.

Other directorial projects included 1988’s The Milagro Beanfield War and A River Runs Through It in 1992, as well as Quiz Show in 1994 and 1998’s The Horse Whisperer, in which he starred opposite Scarlett Johansson and Kristin Scott Thomas.

Redford was a passionate environmentalist and advocate for independent cinema, which led to his creation of the Sundance Institute, known for its annual Sundance Film Festival.

The festival has helped launched the careers of directors including Quentin Tarantino and Steven Soderbergh and provided a launchpad for films such as Reservoir Dogs, Sex, Lies And Videotape, The Blair Witch Project, Little Miss Sunshine and recent Oscar-winner Coda.

Redford carried on acting throughout his career, with notable roles in The Natural, Out Of Africa and blockbuster Indecent Proposal, in which he starred opposite Demi Moore and Woody Harrelson.

He won rave reviews in 2013 for his turn as a shipwrecked sailor in All Is Lost, in which he was the film’s only performer, and most recently he ventured into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, playing double agent Alexander Pierce.