Actor and director Robert Redford, one of the greatest names in the history of American cinema, passed away in his sleep on the morning of this Tuesday (16), at 89 years old, in his home in Utah, United States.
The information was confirmed by his press office. The cause of death was not disclosed.
Redford marked generations both as a Hollywood star and as a filmmaker and activist. With a career spanning more than five decades, he starred in classics such as Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969), The Sting (1973), All the President’s Men (1976), and Out of Africa (1985).
He was nominated for an Oscar as an actor, but won the statuette for best director in his debut behind the cameras with Ordinary People (1980), which also won best film. Throughout his career, he also directed titles such as A River Runs Through It (1992) and Quiz Show (1994), both acclaimed by critics.
More than a movie star, Redford played a decisive role in consolidating American independent cinema. In 1981, he founded the Sundance Institute and, a few years later, created the Sundance Film Festival, today a worldwide reference for discovering new talents. It was on this stage that filmmakers like Steven Soderbergh emerged with the success of Sex, Lies, and Videotape (1989).
In 1999, the Brazilian film Central do Brasil, directed by Walter Salles, was awarded at the Sundance Film Festival. The victory at the event, one of the most important in independent cinema, helped boost the film’s career, which was later nominated for the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film.
In the early 1990s, Redford and Brazilian actress Sônia Braga had a relationship, which was reported by the press at the time. The affair was one of the actor’s most famous relationships; he always showed himself to be discreet about his personal life.
Off the screens, the actor also stood out for his environmental activism. In the 1970s, he participated in campaigns against highway projects and polluting plants in Utah, achieving victories that helped transform natural areas into national monuments.
Heartthrob on the screens and a reference for engagement off them, Redford leaves a legacy that goes far beyond cinema. His trajectory united glamour, social consciousness, and the defense of auteur cinema, far from the spotlights of the big studios.
Source: Agência Brasil