Robert Redford’s list of film credits is lengthy with the screen icon starring in the likes of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and All the President’s Men. But his legacy is even larger.
After news broke that the actor—who founded the Sundance Institute in 1981 to support indie filmmakers, leading to the creation of the Sundance Film Festival—died at his home in Utah Sept. 16 at just 89, stars like Meryl Streep,Jane Fondaand William Shatnerare sharing their thoughts.
Streep, who starred alongside Redford in Out of Africa in 1985, told Deadline in a statement, “One of the lions has passed. Rest in peace my lovely friend.”
And Redford’s Barefoot in the Park costar Jane Fonda also shared a touching tribute to her late friend.
“It hit me hard this morning when I read that Bob was gone,” she wrote in a statement to Just Jared. “I can’t stop crying. He meant a lot to me and was a beautiful person in every way. He stood for an America we have to keep fighting for.”
As for the Star Trek alum shared, “Condolences to the family of Robert Redford.”
Piers Morgan, for his part, commemorated a moment of interviewing the late Hollywood legend.
“One of the all-time great movie stars,” Piers Morgan wrote in a Sept. 16 post on X. “A true Hollywood legend who starred in so many of my favourite films. What a career, what an actor, what a sad loss.”
Meanwhile, Oscar winner and CODA star Marlee Martlin emphasized Redford’s work in getting small films made.
“Our film, CODA, came to the attention of everyone because of Sundance,” she wrote on X. “And Sundance happened because of Robert Redford. A genius has passed.”
Others who didn’t work directly with Redford shared their condolences.
“With love and admiration,” Colman Domingo wrote on X. “Thank you Mr. Redford for your everlasting impact. Will be felt for generations. R.I.P.”
Oscar-winning director Ron Howard also paid tribute to Redford’s legacy.
“Thank you Robert Redford, a tremendously influential cultural figure for the creative choices made as an actor/producer/director,” Howard wrote on X. “And for launching the Sundance Film Festival which supercharged America’s Independent Film movement. Artistic Gamechanger.”
Redford’s death was confirmed in the early hours of Sept. 16 by his publicist Cindy Berger, who said he died at his home “in the mountains of Utah.” Berger noted it was “the place he loved, surrounded by those he loved.”
“He will be missed greatly,” Berger added in her statement. “The family requests privacy.”
Redford—who tied the knot with wife Sibylle Szaggars in 2009—was a quintessential Hollywood star in the 1970s, and assisted in maintaining cinema’s grip on culture as one of the founders of the Sundance Film Festival. Although he started as an on-screen personality, he did some of his best work behind the camera, earning an Academy Award for Best Directing for his work on Ordinary People in 1980.
While he was passionate about filmmaking, Redford was also an activist for the climate. In 2005, he founded the Redford Center, a nonprofit dedicated to “environmental impact filmmaking,” per its website. Through its mission, the center states that its films have “halted the construction of harmful coal plants, restored the Colorado River Delta, reconnected people to nature, and helped accelerate the clean energy revolution.”
In 2016, Redford was given the Presidential Medal of Freedom by then-president Barack Obama for his work in both the film and climate space.
“As an actor, director, producer, and as an advocate, he has not stopped,” Obama said during the ceremony. “We admire Bob not just for his remarkable acting, but for having figured out what to do next.”
Indeed, it wasn’t until 2018 that Redford—who shares four children with ex wife Lola Van Wagenen—decided to slow down and spend more time with his family.
“I just figure that I’ve had a long career that I’m very pleased with,” Redford told the Associated Press at the time. “It’s been so long, ever since I was 21. I figure now as I’m getting into my 80s, it’s maybe time to move toward retirement and spend more time with my wife and family.”
Keep reading for a deeper look into Redford’s life…
1965
1967
Barefoot In The Park
1969
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
1970
Little Fauss and Big Halsy
1973
The Way We Were
1978
1980
Directing Ordinary People
1981
1985
Out of Africa
1988
1993
Indecent Proposal
1995
1998
The Horse Whisperer
2002
2007
2012
2013
2015
2018
The Old Man & the Gun
2021
