Hollywood icon Robert Redford has announced his retirement from acting.
In an interview with his grandson for the Walker Art Center, Redford was discussing how much drawing and painting have been a staple of his life when he’s asked if he would ever return to it. Redford responded with this:
“Yeah, a lot—and a lot lately because I’m getting tired of acting. I’m an impatient person, so it’s hard for me to sit around and do take after take after take. At this point in my life, age 80, it’d give me more satisfaction because I’m not dependent on anybody. It’s just me, just the way it used to be, and so going back to sketching—that’s sort of where my head is right now.
So, I’m thinking of moving in that direction and not acting so much. I’ve got two acting projects in the works: Our Souls at Night, with Jane Fonda, a love story for older people who get a second chance in life, and Old Man with a Gun, a lighter piece with Casey Affleck and Sissy Spacek. Once they’re done then I’m going to say, “Okay, that’s goodbye to all that,” and then just focus on directing.”
Redford goes on to tell a story about dreaming of the luxurious lifestyle that comes with fame and fortune and how much he disliked it when he finally got there. The interview, where Redford also discusses going to Grandparent’s Day at his grandchildren’s elementary school and starting the Sundance Film Festival, can be viewed here.
With dozens of film and television credits over six decades, numerous accolades, and his name on the top of the posters for some of Hollywood’s greatest films, Redford’s retirement is a sad one.
One of his first breakthrough roles was as a bisexual movie star in Inside Daisy Clover, which won Redford a Golden Globe for Most Promising Newcomer. He later starred in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, the biggest film of 1969 that cemented Redford as a Hollywood star.
He followed that up with films like The Way We Were, The Sting, Three Days of the Condor and All the President’s Men. He recently showed up in Disney’s remake of Pete’s Dragon that was released this past summer and played CBS news anchor Dan Rather in last year’s Truth. His highest-grossing film is Captain America: The Winter Soldier. For everything you need to understand this man’s talent and legacy, you can watch a clip from his greatest performance below.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cyZeSJ9k8l0
