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Robert Redford through with acting after new movie, he says

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Actor Robert Redford announces plans to retire
Getty Images
ByAndrea Dresdale
August 06, 2018, 7:55 PM

Movie legend Robert Redford, star of films like "All the President’s Men," "The Natural" and "The Sting," says his time in front of the camera has come to an end.

The Sundance Film Festival founder told Entertainment Weekly that he was serious back in 2016 when he said he was retiring from acting, and his role in "The Old Man and The Gun" would be his last.

The movie, about real-life bank robber Forrest Tucker, debuts Sept. 28. It co-stars Sissy Spacek, Danny Glover, Tom Waits and Casey Affleck.

"I pretty well concluded that this would be it for me in terms of acting, and [I’ll] move towards retirement after this ’cause I’ve been doing it since I was 21," Redford added. "I thought, 'Well, that’s enough.' And why not go out with something that’s very upbeat and positive?”

Robert Redford: The life of a Hollywood icon

Highlights from Robert Redford's legendary career.
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Robert Redford has had a legendary career starring in Hollywood classic films such as "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid," "The Sting" and "All the President's Men." As he rose to fame, Redford moved behind the camera to even more praise with films like "Quiz Show" and "Ordinary People," for which he won an Academy Award. More than just his films, Redford is also an outspoken environmentalist and philanthropist, founding the Sundance Institute which showcases independent films at its annual festival. </br></br>Robert Redford poses at the Sundance Resort in Provo, Utah, Sept. 23, 2013.
Fred R. Conrad/The New York Times/Redux

The Academy Award-winner said he was excited to play Tucker, who spent 60 years robbing banks and escaping from prison.

“The thing that really got me about him -- which I hope the film shows -- is he robbed 17 banks and he got caught 17 times and went to prison 17 times," Redford said. "But he also escaped 17 times. So it made me wonder, 'I wonder if he was not averse to getting caught so he that could enjoy the real thrill of his life, which is to escape?'”

Actor/director/producer Robert Redford attends the New York premiere of "Our Souls at Night" at the Museum of Modern Art, Sept. 27, 2017, in New York City.
Jim Spellman/WireImage/Getty Images

Redford, 81, has been acting for 60 years -- it’s possible he might continue directing. He won an Oscar for the first movie he directed, 1980's "Ordinary People."

He also directed "Quiz Show," "A River Runs Through It" and "The Horse Whisperer," among other films.

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