Robert Redford

Robert Redford (born Charles Robert Redford Jr.) was an Oscar-winning actor, director and founder of the Sundance Film Festival. Born in Santa Monica, California he attended the University of Colorado but was later asked to leave due to academic struggles. He briefly studied painting in Europe before enrolling at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York City.

Redford began his career on stage and in television in the late 1950s. He made his Broadway debut in 1959’s Tall Story before gaining attention for his performance in Barefoot in the Park alongside Elizabeth Ashley, which led to a 1967 film version costarring Jane Fonda. His breakout film role came in 1969 as the Sundance Kid opposite Paul Newman in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. In 1980, he founded the Sundance Institute, which later began hosting the Sundance Film Festival as a means of platforming independent filmmaking.

Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, Redford starred in several critically acclaimed films including The Way We Were (1973), The Great Gatsby (1974), Three Days of the Condor (1975), Brubaker (1980) and The Natural (1984). He went on to make his directorial debut with Ordinary People in 1980, winning the Academy Award for Best Director. Some of his later film appearances include Pete’s Dragon (2016), Our Souls At Night (2017) and Avengers: Endgame (2019).

Redford married Lola Van Wagenen in 1958. They had four children: Scott (born in 1959, died of Sudden Infant Death Syndromes), Shauna (born in 1960), David (1962-2020) and Amy (born in 1970). The couple divorced in 1985. He later tied the knot with German artist Sibylle Szaggars in 2009.

Redford died in his sleep on September 16, 2025, at the age of 89.