Actor Robert Redford Has Died at the Age of 89, but What Was the Cause of Death?

Few actors have done more to shape the history of Hollywood than Robert Redford. In addition to being one of the great marquee idols of all time, Redford was also an acclaimed and Oscar-winning director, and the founder of the Sundance Film Festival, which has helped to launch dozens of great directors.

Following the news of his death at the age of 89, many are looking back on Robert's remarkable life and legacy, even as some others wonder what his cause of death was. Here's what we know.

Robert's death was first announced via a statement.

"Robert Redford passed away on Sept. 16, 2025, at his home at Sundance in the mountains of Utah — the place he loved, surrounded by those he loved," Cindi Berger, chairman and CEO of Rogers & Cowan PMK, said, according to People. "He will be missed greatly. The family requests privacy." No cause of death was disclosed, although reports do suggest that he died in his sleep.

There had been no previous reporting to suggest that the actor was sick, but at 89, Robert was certainly among a class of Hollywood legends whose death many were anticipating.

Although he continued making movies until the late 2010s (and made some great ones in that period, including his swan song The Old Man and the Gun), Robert was best known for being a marquee idol during the 1970s, when he starred in movies like All the President's Men and Three Days of the Condor.

Over the years, he branched into directing, winning the Best Director Oscar for 1980's Ordinary People, and earning another nomination in 1994 for directing Quiz Show. He also became a founder of the Sundance Film Festival, which has been a bastion for independent film over the years since its inception, and has become one of the most famous film festivals in the world.

Although he continued to work into his early eighties, Robert announced in 2018 that he would be stepping away from acting after his starring role in the film The Old Man & the Gun, which tells the story of an aged bank robber who breaks out of prison to commit a series of daring heists.

The movie was a fitting vehicle for Robert, one that took full advantage of the natural charisma that has been his trade for decades.

"Never say never, but I pretty well concluded that this would be it for me in terms of acting, and [I'll] move towards retirement after this 'cause I've been doing it since I was 21," he told Entertainment Weekly at the time. Robert ultimately reneged on that commitment to some extent, although The Old Man & the Gun was his last star vehicle.

Thanks to his long career of onscreen work, there are any number of places you can go to remember Robert Redford. He was one of the great actors in the history of movies.