He delighted us with performances in some of Hollywoods greatest films, starring opposite Paul Newman in the spectacular crime caper “The Sting”, stepping into the Wild West in “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid”, won an Academy Award for his directorial efforts for “Ordinary People”, and even appeared in a Marvel Film. But now, after 50 years delighting millions around the world with his effortless charm, Robert Redford has announced his decision to retire from acting.

End of an era

The “All the President’s Men” star, who recently celebrated his 80th birthday, has announced that his next two films, “Come Sunday” and “The Old Man and the Gun” are set to be his last, bringing an end to a blistering career that saw him showcasing his talents both in front and behind the camera.

Since rising to fame in the 60s with a number of impressive starring roles, he has become one of the most successful stars of cinema, with a career full of varied performances, including "The Great Gatsby" and "Out of Africa", alongside Meryl Streep.

Thankfully, the decision to retire won't see him stepping away from cinema for good. IHe will instead,dedicate his time to directing.

Time to move on

Speaking of his decision, he stated “I’ve got two acting projects in the works. “Once they’re done then I’m going to say, “OK, that’s goodbye to all that,” and then just focus on directing.”

As of 2016, he has 10 Directing credits to his name with “Ordinary People” being his most successful to date.

He’s directed the likes of Tom Cruise, in “Lions for Lambs” and Will Smith and Matt Damon in “The Legend of Bagger Vance”, but his last directing effort was 2012's "The Company You Keep."

A modern icon

Before the decision to retire was made official after years of rumours, he has spent the past decade starring in a number of varied roles.

He proved that he's still got it with his performance with the brilliant at sea, “All is Lost”, and has also found time to star in “Captain America: The Winter Soldier”, as well as this year's surprise success, the remake of "Pete's Dragon".

Outside of acting, he also founded the Sundance Institute, and is the chairman of the Sundance Film Festival, and has several producing credits under his name.