Robert Redford, the legendary actor, acclaimed director, and founder of the Sundance Film Festival, wasnโt just a Hollywood icon โ he was a devoted father and husband whose personal life has been marked by both love and tragedy.
The Oscar-winning actor, director, and Sundance Film Festival founder passed away on September 16 at the age of 89. Over his long career, he left behind a legacy of iconic films, memorable Hollywood performances, and significant philanthropic contributions.
Outside of his professional life, Redford and his first wife, Lola Van Wagenen, raised four children together: Scott, Shauna, James, and Amy Redford.
Born Charles Robert Redford Jr. on August 18, 1936, in Santa Monica, California, Redford grew into one of the most respected figures in the entertainment world.
His golden-haired charm and unforgettable performances earned him international fame, while his passion for independent cinema reshaped Hollywood through the Sundance Institute.
Robert Redfordโs first marriage
Yet behind the glitz of fame, Redfordโs heart belonged to his family.
Redfordโs first marriage was to producer and historian Lola Van Wagenen in 1958, a union that lasted nearly three decades and brought four children into the world.
Tragedy struck early. Their first child, Scott, was born in 1959 but tragically passed away at just seven weeks old from sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).
Devastated, Redford sought solace in his craft, keeping the grief private.
โHow does that show up in my work? I donโt know. I was only 21; my wife was 20. We were just starting our lives; I was just starting my career in New York,โ he said at the time โOf course, it was traumatic, and how that plays out over time, I donโt know. We had to deal with it. You have to move on.โ
โBut itโs pretty traumatic when it happens, particularly when youโre that young,โ he concluded. โYouโre not equipped to deal with it.โ
Then, life carried on.
Shauna Redford
In November 1960, the couple welcomed their eldest daughter, Shauna. Though she didnโt follow in her fatherโs footsteps as an actor, Shauna became a successful painter. She has been married to Eric Schlosser since 1985, and they share two children, Conor and Mica.
In 2018, Redford spoke about his daughter Shauna while reflecting on the Sundance Institute, the arts nonprofit he founded in 1981 after retiring from acting.
Reflecting on the future, he said Sundance โis going to be in the hands of my children,โ referring to the organization that also oversees the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah.
โIโve been spending a lot of time bringing my children โ Shauna and Amy and Jamie โ into the picture, and now theyโre there and theyโre in a position to run the show,โ he told the Salt Lake Tribune at the time.. โBasically, theyโre inheriting what I started, and theyโre going to keep it going with my grandchildren.โ
In a 1974 interview with The Gazette, Lola explained that the Redford home โ at the time a spacious apartment on Upper Gift Avenue in New York โ always centered around the kitchen.
She enjoyed cooking, as did Shauna and Jamie. But when the kids were alone with their father, Robert, Lola said it was the children who did all the cooking.
James Redford
Redfordโs second son, James โ known as Jamie โ was a gifted filmmaker who made his mark producing, directing, and writing award-winning projects including The Big Picture: Rethinking Dyslexia.
Married for 35 years to his wife Kyle, James and Kyle had two children, Dylan, who works for The Borscht Corporation, and Lena, who has carved her path in digital storytelling for companies like SuperDeluxe and Illumination Entertainment.
In a 2016 interview with HollywoodChicago.com, Redfordโs son Jamie reflected on the ups and downs of growing up with a famous father.
โThere can be no argument that Iโm in a unique situation, at the very least,โ he told the outlet. โBut I think the name, for every time it has proved to be helpful, it has also proved to be a challenge.โ
โAt the end of the day, the task I have is just like anyone else, to prove myself through my product or work,โ Jamie added. โIโve really found this to be true, that itโs a zero-sum game.โ
Amy Redford
Like her famous father, Amy went on to build a career in the entertainment industry as an actress, producer, and director. She has appeared in films such as Hate Crime and Candybar. Today, she lives with her partner, theater director Matt August, and together they share a daughter, Eden August.
Amy has long credited her father as an early inspiration. Speaking with IndieWire in 2008, she recalled what drew her to filmmaking:
โAs a kid, I witnessed the process of my dad making films and the extraordinary cast of characters that came together to make it happen,โ she said. โI found myself drawn to the nomadic and creative life that that implied. โฆ What led me to actually having the opportunity to do it was a combination of luck, timing and stubbornness.โ
Over the years, Amy has worked behind the camera directing feature films, television episodes, and music videos, including The Guitar in 2008 and Jeff Buckleyโs Everyday People in 2016. She also spoke to HuffPost in 2008 about the importance of amplifying womenโs voices in a male-dominated industry.
โI think itโs easier for women to submerge their voice. I think that women innately have wonderful things to say but to accommodate others itโs easier for us to put our own voice aside,โ she said. โEven the loudest women are loud for a reason because they canโt be heard. I just had a daughter two months ago and I hope that whatever I do has a positive influence on her chances of not having to fight so hard.โ
Amyโs personal life has also been in the public eye. According to The New York Times, she was married to Scottish photographer Mark Mann from 2000 to 2004. Four years later, in 2008, she married Matt August just six weeks before the birth of their first child.
โIt was actually easier to figure out when to direct a movie and have a baby than it was to figure out when to get married,โ she joked to Observer. The pair went on to have twins before eventually divorcing, a topic Amy reflected on in a 2022 interview with Ageist.
When asked about raising children on her own, she explained: โI would say thereโs sort of a cost and benefit in many ways. Itโs very easy to kind of point the finger at the other person thatโs staring across the kitchen table from you when youโre doing parenting in the same house. And when youโre not, you have to take a lot more responsibility for the culture of your home in a way thatโs pretty autonomous. And itโs made me have to look at some of my own instincts in a different light.โ
Jamesโ passing
In 2020, Redfordโs beloved son James passed away. Jamie had battled a rare liver disease since childhood, surviving two transplants, only to be struck down years later by liver cancer.
Friends and family asked for privacy during this deeply painful time, while colleagues and admirers flooded social media with messages of support.
โThe grief is immeasurable with the loss of a child,โ a family representative said.
โJamie was a loving son, husband, and father. His legacy lives on through his children, art, filmmaking, and devoted passion.โ
Died in Utah
Redford and Van Wagenen never made a public announcement about separating or divorcing, but in 1982, entertainment columnist Shirley Eder noted that the couple โhave been very much apart for a number of years.โ
Redford eventually wed his longtime companion, Sibylle Szaggars, in 2009 during a ceremony at the Louis C. Jacob Hotel in Hamburg, Germany. She had been living with him since 1996, sharing his residence in Sundance, Utah.
It was also there, in Sundance, that Redford passed away peacefully in his sleep on September 16, 2025, at the age of 89.
