robert duvall: Hollywood mourns 'one of the greatest actors we ever had'
Robert Duvall, the Oscar-winning actor whose six-decade career produced indelible performances from The Godfather to Apocalypse Now and Tender Mercies, has died at the age of 95. Tributes poured in from co-stars, directors and collaborators who described him as a giant of the screen, a steadying presence and an artist who never stopped treating each role as new.
Tributes from colleagues and co-stars
Fellow actors praised Duvall for both his craft and his warmth. Al Pacino called him a born actor whose "phenomenal gift will always be remembered, " while Adam Sandler shared photographs from their time shooting the 2022 film Hustle, calling Duvall "funny as hell. Strong as hell. One of the greatest actors we ever had. " Viola Davis said she had always been "in awe" of Duvall's towering portrayals of quietly dominant men and described him simply as "a giant... an icon. " Robert De Niro expressed a wish to match Duvall's longevity and offered a brief blessing in his tribute.
Other collaborators underlined the personal side of the man behind the roles. Walton Goggins, who worked with Duvall on a film the actor wrote and directed, called him the greatest storyteller and lamented the loss of a guiding light. The chorus of memories highlights not only Duvall's artistic range but the mentorship and friendship he offered younger performers on set.
Signature roles and a restless artistic spirit
Duvall's filmography reads like a primer on American cinema of the late 20th century. He earned seven Oscar nominations and won the Academy Award for Best Actor for Tender Mercies in 1984. His turn as the mafia consigliere in The Godfather and The Godfather Part II remains a touchstone; likewise, his portrayal of Lieutenant Colonel William Kilgore in Apocalypse Now yielded one of cinema's most quoted lines and showcased his ability to fuse menace and humanity even in brief scenes.
Directors who worked with him emphasized a professional intensity that never slipped into complacency. Steve McQueen, who cast Duvall as politician Tom Mulligan in Widows, recalled that Duvall arrived on set as an icon yet remained nervous in the face of a new role—a sign, McQueen said, of a great artist. Those nerves, he added, transformed into a focused energy that could anchor a film: "He was the rock. He brought gravity. " Anecdotes from the Widows set—Duvall softly singing to a co-star between takes, his wife quietly helping with line prompts—paint a portrait of an actor who cultivated craft with humility and discipline.
Legacy: a steadying force in American film
Beyond awards and famous lines, Duvall's legacy is in the steadiness he brought to ensembles and the risks he took as an independent artist. He wrote and directed projects, bet on unconventional material and refused roles that did not suit his artistic instincts. That autonomy defined his later career as much as the early showstoppers that made him a household name.
Colleagues have framed his death as the passing of a particular kind of Hollywood figure: someone who combined technical skill, emotional honesty and a readiness to serve the story. "Greatness never dies. It stays... as a gift, " one tribute read, asking that he rest in peace while acknowledging the lasting presence of his work. For generations of viewers and peers, Robert Duvall will be remembered as a rock on which performances and films were built, and as an actor who kept finding fresh ways to engage with the craft until the end.
