By Emilee Speck
Copyright
The world is mourning the passing of Robert Redford on Tuesday, an actor known for his deep ties to the American Southwest and decades of work in the environmental movement. A representative for Redford confirmed in a statement to Fox News that the Sundance Film Festival founder died at his home in Utah on Tuesday. “Robert Redford passed away on September 16, 2025, at his home at Sundance in the mountains of Utah – the place he loved, surrounded by those he loved,” his representative told Fox News Digital. “He will be missed greatly. The family requests privacy.” While Redford’s acting career began in New York on stage and television, Redford fell in love with the Southwest after filming “Butch Cassidy & The Sundance Kid.” According to The Salt Lake Tribune, Redford purchased two acres in Provo Canyon, Utah, and built a home there for his family. The Beehive State was Redford’s oasis away from Hollywood. “Other people have analysis,” Redford would say. “I have Utah.” He would later purchase a nearby resort, becoming Sundance Mountain Resort in 1969. Redford was an outspoken advocate for Utah public lands and a champion for environmental groups, including the National Wildlife Federation and Natural Resources Defense Council. “Robert Redford was a lifelong champion for wildlife conservation, a trailblazer on increasing awareness of climate impacts, and an unwavering advocate for conserving our beloved public lands,” NWF CEO Collin O’Mara said in a statement to FOX Weather. Redford continued to dedicate his work toward environmental challenges through what he did best: filmmaking. In 2005, Redford and his son James Redford established The Redford Center, a nonprofit dedicated to environmental filmmaking. “We felt that the pervasive, apocalyptic climate story we were hearing was helping create urgency and awareness of the climate problem, but it was not moving enough people into action,” Redford wrote about the nonprofit. In 2017, The Redford Center released the HBO documentary “Happening: A Clean Energy Revolution,” directed by and starring James Redford. “It is our most ambitious project and is a direct response to the climate crisis – answering the questions: What can we do? Where is the hope?” Redford wrote.
