Robert Redford, who starred with Brad Pitt in one of the best thrillers, identified as a liberal. So, it might not come as a surprise that he was not a fan of the 37th president of the United States, Richard Nixon. In a conversation with Interview magazine in September 1994, he expressed his contempt for Nixon.
Redford commented that the infamous Watergate scandal was “Nixon’s legacy”. He continued:
Watching reporters try to dig up all his achievements when he died, as if he’d been a venerable statesman—that was a tough moment. Nixon’s legacy isn’t China, or foreign policy, but the fact that he never could say, “You got me, I feel shitty.” Garry Wills encapsulated it best with his theory that it was all about Nixon’s need to fail big. The one success he could achieve was to fail in the biggest arena possible ’cause he was such a loser. Which he was.
The political scandal first came to light on the night of June 17, 1972, when five men were arrested for breaking into the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate office complex in Washington, D.C. The scandal ultimately resulted in Nixon’s resignation on the verge of his impeachment in August 1974.
Robert Redford Was Never a Fan of President Nixon
Two years after the Watergate scandal took the U.S. by storm, Robert Redford appeared in All the President’s Men, the biographical political thriller about the scandal. Redford played Bob Woodward, one of the two investigative journalists from The Washington Post who helped uncover the scandal.
In March 2013, Redford revealed that he had developed a dislike for Richard Nixon long before the public learned of the scandal. At an LA Times screening of The Company We Keep, the actor said that Nixon honored him with an athletic award when he was thirteen years old (via Politico). He continued:
“I didn’t know who he was. He was just a guy in a suit. But it was Earl Warren, the governor, and Nixon, then a senator. When Nixon handed me the award and shook my hand, it was just a vibe. I thought, ‘I don’t like this guy.’”
Little did the young Redford know that his instincts about Nixon were correct and that this man would orchestrate a scandal to cling to power, even at the cost of dishonoring the nation.
U.S. President Donald Trump Paid Tribute to Robert Redford
On September 16, 2025, CNN reported that Robert Redford passed away at the age of 89, leaving behind a legacy that will be remembered for decades to come. Redford often criticized President Donald Trump. Despite this, Trump only had good things to say as a tribute to the actor’s passing.
Before leaving for a state visit to the U.K., Trump told the reporters (via X):
“Robert Redford had a series of years where there was nobody better. There was a period of time when he was the hottest. I thought he was great.”
Redford, however, had some strong words for Trump. In November 2019, he wrote an opinion piece for NBC about a “dictator-like attack by President Donald Trump on everything this country stands for.” He continued:
“As last week’s impeachment hearings made clear, our shared tolerance and respect for the truth, our sacred rule of law, our essential freedom of the press and our precious freedoms of speech — all have been threatened by a single man. It’s time for Trump to go.”
President Trump may be back in office, but Redford is no longer here to call him out. Still, fans will remember him not only for his contributions to Hollywood but also for his outspoken political views.
Which is your favorite Robert Redford movie? Let us know in the comments.
All the President’s Men is currently streaming on The Criterion Channel.
