Early Life
Redford grew up in Los Angeles, attended the University of Colorado on a baseball scholarship, and studied painting and acting in New York.
Career
He rose to stardom in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969) and The Sting (1973), and starred in All the President's Men (1976), The Natural and Out of Africa. He won the Academy Award for Best Director for Ordinary People (1980) and received an Honorary Oscar in 2002.
Legacy
In 1981 Redford founded the Sundance Institute, which supports independent filmmakers and hosts the Sundance Film Festival. He received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2016 and died in September 2025 at age 89.
Sources and further reading
Last updated: 2026-09-24