Robert Redford Says Announcing His Retirement From Acting Was ‘A Mistake’
Next week, Robert Redford‘s final role hits theaters. Or wait, is it? David Lowery‘s The Old Man & the Gun is expected to be the last movie on Redford’s acting resume, but now he’s regretting announcing his retirement in the first place.
Back in 2016, Redford revealed he had two more movies on the way, then he was bidding adieu to it all to focus on directing. The first of those was Netflix’s Our Souls At Night, making his alleged final role Lowery’s film. Then last month Redford confirmed his retirement to Entertainment Weekly saying, “Never say never, but I pretty well concluded that this would be it for me in terms of acting.” However, now that may not be the case.
When asked if he was really retiring at the premiere of The Old Man & the Gun on Thursday, the 82-year-old actor told Variety, “That was a mistake. I should never have said that.” Wait, what?! When pressed once more if this was indeed his last role, Redford wouldn’t answer, saying he rather let it be a mystery. He added:
If I’m going to retire, I should just slip quietly away from acting, but I shouldn’t be talking about it because I think it draws too much attention in the wrong way. I want to be focused on this film and the cast.
That’s a totally fair response, especially considering how much the press (myself included) has made his retirement news a big part of the conversation around Lowery’s movie. But the thing is, The Old Man & the Gun plays like a loving tribute to Redford’s career, so if it turns out to be his last movie, it’s a darn perfect way to say goodbye. Now that there’s been all this fuss though, perhaps Redford will take another role just to, as he says, keep the mystery alive. And hey, if he keeps acting, that’s only a win for us.
The Old Man & the Gun hits theaters September 28.