Meryl Streep is mourning the loss of Hollywood icon and former costar Robert Redford.
“One of the lions has passed. Rest in peace my lovely friend,” Streep, 76, said in a statement via ABC News on Tuesday, September 16, after Redford’s death at age 89.
Streep and Redford shared the screen in 1985’s Out of Africa, a romantic drama directed and produced by Sydney Pollack. The film, based loosely on the 1937 autobiographical book of the same name by Isak Dinesen, saw critical acclaim, with Streep earning an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress, while costar Klaus Maria Brandauer earned a nod for Best Supporting Actor. Pollack ended up taking home the Oscars for Best Director and Best Picture for the film.
While working together on Out of Africa, Streep learned a vital lesson from Redford about family and parenthood.
“Motherhood, marriage, it’s a balancing act. Especially when you have a job that you consider rewarding,” she once said, per SlashFilm. “It’s a challenge but the best kind of challenge … Robert Redford taught me that when they were babies. ‘They are not your props.’ I really admired the way he protected his family. It’s something I consciously emulated.’”
Streep shares kids Henry, Mamie, Grace and Louisa with ex Don Gummer, while Redford is survived by daughters Shauna and Amy. (Redford’s son Scott died three months after birth in 1959 due to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome and son David died of cancer in 2020.)
Barbra Streisand, the star of one of Pollack’s other films with Redford, 1973’s The Way We Were, also spoke out after hearing news of Redford’s death on Tuesday.
“Every day on the set of The Way We Were was exciting, intense and pure joy,” Streisand, 83, captioned a post via Instagram. “We were such opposites: he was from the world of horses; I was allergic to them! Yet, we kept trying to find out more about each other, just like the characters in the movie.”
The actress continued, “Bob was charismatic, intelligent, intense, always interesting— and one of the finest actors ever. The last time I saw him, when he came to lunch, we discussed art and decided to send each other our first drawings. He was one of a kind and I’m so grateful to have had the opportunity to work with him. #RobertRedford.”
Scarlett Johansson was another of Redford’s former costars who shared a touching tribute for the late actor. The pair starred together in the 1998 drama The Horse Whisperer when she was just 13 years old.
“Every day before each scene, he would take the time to sit with me and walk me through all of the beats that led my character up until that particular point in the story,” Johansson, 40, said in a statement to People on Tuesday. “No matter the reality of the day’s rush, I always felt he had all the time in the world for our work. Bob created an environment on set that was calm and precious; a place where actors could make discoveries. He was patient and warm and kind.”
She thanked the actor for his faith in her abilities and acting as a mentor when they shared the screen together.
“Bob, thank you for your belief in me and for your grace and guidance,” Johansson added. “You inspired so many artists, me included, to go deeper, to stay present, to push creative boundaries, and to explore further, and for that, we are forever grateful.”
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