Robert Redford was a father of 4: His words on the loss of his two sons were heart-wrenching

Robert Redford, who won an Oscar for acting, directing, and starting the Sundance Film Festival, died peacefully on September 16, 2025, at the age of 89. Redford was born in 1936 in Santa Monica. He became a Hollywood legend and a strong supporter of independent film.

He had four kids with his first wife, Lola Van Wagenen. Sadly, their first child, Scott, died when he was very young. Later, Redford lost his son James “Jamie” Redford in 2020 at the age of 58, which was another terrible loss for him.

Jamie was an activist and filmmaker who spent a lot of time working on health and environmental issues. He and his father started The Redford Center, which uses film and other media to promote climate and environmental justice.

Jamie directed and produced important projects throughout his career, such as The Big Picture: Rethinking Dyslexia and well-known documentaries like Watershed, Toxic Hot Seat, and Mann v. Ford. His work showed both creativity and a desire to make the world a better place.

Jamie has had health problems since he was a child. He had a rare autoimmune liver disease called Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis, which required him to have several transplants. He also started the James Redford Institute for Transplant Awareness, a nonprofit that works to get people to think about donating organs and tissues.

Kyle, Jamie’s wife of 32 years, said in 2020 that he had died from bile-duct cancer in the liver. She wrote a touching tribute, thanking him for their life together and their two kids. Her words showed how much he meant to her as a husband and father, as well as a filmmaker.

At the time, Robert Redford’s publicist said in a statement that the actor was grieving with his family in private and called the loss of a child “immeasurable.”

Famous people also paid their respects. Mark Ruffalo said Jamie was “sweet and kind,” and Kiefer Sutherland called him “a wonderful writer and man.” Like his father’s, Jamie’s legacy lives on through art, family, and activism.