Screen icon Robert Redford, known for his role in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, has died at the age of 89.
The news was confirmed in a statement by Cindi Berger, the chief executive of the publicity firm Rogers & Cowan PMK.
Berger said Redford died in his sleep “surrounded by those he loved,” at his home in Utah. A cause of death was not disclosed.
Aside from Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, which he starred in alongside Paul Newman, Redford was known for his roles in films like All the President’s Men (1976), Three Days of the Condor (1975) and The Sting (1973), among many more.
He made his directorial debut in 1980 with Ordinary People (1980), which won four Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director.
Redford went on to found the Sundance Institute, which created the Sundance Film Festival. It has grown into the largest U.S. festival for independent films and has premiered countless modern classics.
Hailed as Hollywood’s former golden boy, tributes have already begun to pour in for the late star.
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Stephen King pays tribute
The famed horror author wrote on X: “Robert Redford has passed away. He was part of a new and exciting Hollywood in the 70s and 80s. Hard to believe he was 89.”
Tom Murray16 September 2025 14:03
Watch: Robert Redford in ‘Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid’
Tom Murray16 September 2025 13:58
Piers Morgan calls Redford ‘of the all-time great movie stars’
“RIP Robert Redford, 89. One of the all-time great movie stars,” the TV personality wrote on X. “A true Hollywood legend who starred in so many of my favourite films: Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, The Sting, The Way We Were, All The President’s Men. What a career, what an actor, what a sad loss.”
Tom Murray16 September 2025 13:57
‘CODA’ star Marlee Matlin pays tribute to Sundance founder
“Our film, CODA, came to the attention of everyone because of Sundance,” wrote Matlin. “And Sundance happened because of Robert Redford. A genius has passed. RIP Robert.”
After premiering at Sundance Film Festival, CODA went on to become a surprise hit at the 2022 Oscars, winning in all three categories it was nominated in, including Best Picture.
Tom Murray16 September 2025 13:56
How Robert Redford and Paul Newman captured Hollywood’s greatest outlaws
Before Redford’s death at 89, Martin Chilton told the tale of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, one of Hollywood’s best buddy films and the two outlaws who inspired it.
Although William Goldman was convinced his film script about two American outlaws who fled a posse of Pinkerton detectives and escaped to Bolivia had the potential to be a blockbuster hit, the initial response was disheartening. “Every studio but one rejected it,” Goldman recalled in The Reluctant Storyteller. “One studio head said, ‘Well, I’ll buy it if they don’t go to South America.’ I said, ‘But they went there!’ He said, ‘I don’t give a s***. All I know is John Wayne don’t run away.’”
The true story of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
The 1969 movie wasn’t an immediate success with critics, yet it charmed the public. As Robert Redford dies aged 89, Martin Chilton tells the tale of one of Hollywood’s best buddy films and the two outlaws who inspired it
Tom Murray16 September 2025 13:51
Robert Redford, Hollywood’s former golden boy and star of ‘Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid’, has died aged 89
Redford’s death was announced by his publicist on Tuesday, who said he died “surrounded by those he loved” at his home in the mountains outside Provo, Utah.
Redford was a screen idol, and at the height of his fame in the Sixties and Seventies had a global reputation both as a respected actor and a sex symbol, with his sandy blonde hair, megawatt smile and romantic roles opposite stars from Jane Fonda to Barbara Streisand.
Across a six-decade career, Redford made more than 50 movies. He said his two favourites were his collaborations with Paul Newman: Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969) and The Sting (1973).
Tom Murray16 September 2025 13:42
