NEWS HEADLINES: Actor and Director Robert Redford passes at 89 – One America News Network

OAN Staff Brooke Mallory
6:16 PM – Tuesday, September 16, 2025

Robert Redford, the renowned actor, director, and founder of the Sundance Institute, passed away on Tuesday at the age of 89.

He died peacefully in his sleep at his home in Sundance, Utah, surrounded by loved ones. The exact cause of death has not been publicly disclosed.

Born in 1936, in Santa Monica, California, Redford’s career spanned over five decades. Redford grew up in modest circumstances and built a hugely successful career through talent, persistence, and entrepreneurship — achieving success through hard work and persistence.

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He gained fame with roles in films such as “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid” (1969), “All the President’s Men” (1976), and “The Sting” (1973). In 1980, he also directed “Ordinary People,” which won four Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director.

The next year, in 1981, Redford founded the Sundance Institute, and later, the Sundance Film Festival, which became a premier platform for independent filmmakers. His efforts launched the careers of notable filmmakers like Quentin Tarantino, who directed “Pulp Fiction” (1994), and Steven Soderbergh, who directed “Traffic” (2000).

Redford was also an advocate for environmental causes. He co-founded the Redford Center in 2005 with his late son, James, to “promote environmental sustainability.” His contributions to the arts and activism earned him numerous accolades — including the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2016 — given to him by former Democrat President Barack Obama.

Despite Redford’s announced support for Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election and his prior criticisms of the current GOP Commander-in-Chief, President Donald Trump still had fond and respectful words to say in regard to his passing on Tuesday.

“Robert Redford was great; he had a series of years where there was nobody better,” Trump told journalists on Tuesday while leaving the White House for his visit to the United Kingdom.

As news of his passing has made the rounds online and “through the grapevine,” tributes poured in from across the entertainment industry as well. Actress Meryl Streep described him as “one of the lions,” while Director Ron Howard called him an “artistic gamechanger.”