Robert Redford, Oscar-winning actor and Sundance founder, dies at 89

Robert Redford, the Oscar-winning actor, director, and founder of the Sundance Film Festival, has died at the age of 89.

His publicist, Cindi Berger, confirmed he passed away at his home in Sundance, Utah, surrounded by loved ones. No cause of death was provided.

Redford rose to fame in the 1960s and became one of Hollywood’s biggest stars of the 1970s with acclaimed performances in The Candidate, All the President’s Men, The Way We Were, and Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, opposite Paul Newman. His directorial debut, Ordinary People (1980), won him the Academy Award for Best Director and also claimed Best Picture.

Beyond his acting and directing career, Redford left an indelible mark on independent cinema. In 1981, he founded the Sundance Institute and Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, creating a platform that launched the careers of filmmakers like Quentin Tarantino, Steven Soderbergh, and Darren Aronofsky. The festival became a global hub for independent film and is set to relocate to Boulder, Colorado, in 2027.

Born Charles Robert Redford Jr. on August 18, 1937, in Santa Monica, California, he was twice married and had four children. Two of his sons, Scott Anthony and James, predeceased him.

Redford continued to deliver powerful performances later in life, including Out of Africa (1985), All is Lost (2013), and The Old Man and the Gun (2018), which he described as his farewell role. In 2016, President Barack Obama awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom for his contributions to cinema and culture.

Redford’s legacy endures as both a Hollywood icon and a pioneer who elevated independent filmmaking to international recognition.