You need to know
The late Paul Newman family is celebrating his Butch Cassidy and Sundance children’s co-star Robert Redford following news of Redford’s death at the age of 89 on Tuesday, September 16th.
Newman’s daughter, Nell, tells people that the friendship between her father and Redford began with “a film friendship that bloomed in more serious friendships.”
“They had two great movies together and it was a really strong bond,” continues Nell. “I think that’s what brought them together.”
Newman and Redford shared heartbeat status in their prime, first starring together in Butch Cassidy and Sundance’s Children, and again starring in 1973’s The Sting.
“I think he was also a real catalyst for Dad’s interest in environmental issues, as Bob was already ahead of the game,” she says. “I think he had a positive influence on my dad.”
“Bob was a quiet philanthropist. He supported many things, but he wasn’t flashy. Dad didn’t like loud philanthropists,” says Nell. “I know Bob was ahead of the game when it comes to environmental issues. He was a real sounding board for his dad. That’s really good.”
“He was a lovely guy. I remember him fondly because he helped me do my job when I graduated from college,” she recalls helping the late actor get interviews with the NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council), the Environmental Defense Fund, and the science of the public interest. “He was very warm and kind at certain times of my life.”
Don’t miss the story. Sign up for people’s free daily newsletters and stay up to date with what people have to offer, from celebrity news to engaging human stories.
Sunset Boulevard/Corvis via 20th Century Fox Film Corporation/Getty
She also shares how the two friends ran “a kind of buddy movie friendship built on pranks and mutual respect” with each other.
It was a testament to their carefree friendship: Redford is famous for denting a non-engine Porsche to Newman as a birthday joke of his first year. Newman paid off his favor by crushing the car and sending it back to his fellow actors. Nell says it is “one of the best stories” of their pranks.
Nell also recalls that Redford always invited Newman or his family to Sundance, Utah. “Every time I talk to him on the phone, she says, ‘I’ll go out and go skiing, I’ll go out and go to the festival.’ “He was a normal guy who had a very strong interest in the environment. He was just a good guy.”
Newman passed away in September 2008 at the age of 83, after a long battle with cancer, according to a statement from then-public spokesman Jeff Sanderson.
Following news of Newman’s death, Redford said in a statement that “there is a point where emotions go beyond words.”
“I lost a real friend. My life, and this country, is good to have him in it,” he added at the time.
John Springer Collection/Corvis/Corvis via Getty Images
Rogers & Cowan PMK Chairman and CEO Cindi Berger confirmed Redford’s death with people in a statement Tuesday.
“Robert Redford passed away on September 16, 2025 at his Sundance home in the mountains of Utah. He is surrounded by the people he loved,” Berger said. “He’s going to be overlooked a lot. The family demands privacy.”
Redford was killed by two sons. James died in 2020 from bile duct cancer in the liver at the age of 58, and Scott, who died of sudden infantile death syndrome in 1959, two months after his birth.
He is survived by his wife, Civil Zaggers Redford, daughters Shauna and Amy and grandchildren.
