Paul Newman Once Resented Robert Redford on Set — But Their Friendship Became One of Hollywood’s Most Beloved

Their On-Screen Chemistry Looked Effortless

Paul Newman and Robert Redford created one of the most memorable partnerships in movie history when they starred together in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.

The 1969 Western told the story of real-life outlaws Robert LeRoy Parker, better known as Butch Cassidy, and Harry Longabaugh, known as the Sundance Kid.

Their characters were close friends, partners, and fugitives, constantly moving as they tried to stay ahead of the law after a series of robberies.

On screen, Newman and Redford appeared completely natural together.

Their timing was sharp.

Their humor felt spontaneous.

And their chemistry helped turn the film into a classic.

The Movie Became a Major Success

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid went on to win four Academy Awards.

It also became one of the most enduring Westerns of its era.

The film’s appeal came partly from its unusual tone.

It mixed action, humor, friendship, and tragedy in a way that helped distinguish it from more traditional Westerns.

At the center of everything were Newman and Redford.

But Behind the Scenes, Things Were More Complicated

For all the easy friendship audiences saw on screen, the relationship between Newman and Redford was not immediately as warm in real life.

Newman later admitted that he had some frustrations with his younger co-star.

At the time of filming, Newman was 44.

Redford was 33.

The two were at very different stages of their careers.

Newman Had Already Become a Major Star

By the late 1960s, Paul Newman was already firmly established as one of Hollywood’s leading actors.

He had appeared in major films such as Cat on a Hot Tin Roof with Elizabeth Taylor and Cool Hand Luke.

He was already receiving recognition for both acting and directing.

His status gave him enormous credibility within the industry.

Redford Was Still Rising

Robert Redford had already attracted attention, but he had not yet reached the same level of fame.

His performance opposite Natalie Wood in Inside Daisy Clover had earned him a Golden Globe for New Star of the Year.

He was clearly a rising talent.

But compared with Newman, he was still the younger actor trying to establish himself as a major film star.

Newman Actually Wanted Redford’s Role

One of the most surprising details about the film is that Newman would have preferred to play Sundance.

In an interview with BBC’s Talking Pictures, he explained that he felt more naturally suited to the character Redford eventually played.

“We have a lot of fun together, we bounce off each other real well.”

He then admitted, “I would have preferred to have played Sundance. I feel a little more comfortable with that cooled-out kind of quality. I suppose it’s the easier part!”

The Casting Could Have Turned Out Very Differently

Before Redford took the role, Steve McQueen had been considered.

McQueen ultimately turned it down.

He would later also pass on several other major films, including Dirty Harry, The French Connection, and One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest.

That opened the door for Redford.

The decision would change his career.

Redford and Newman Became an Instant Screen Pair

Once filming began, the contrast between the two actors worked beautifully.

Newman brought confidence and experience.

Redford brought a looser, more relaxed quality.

The difference in their personalities helped create the rhythm of the two characters.

That dynamic became one of the film’s greatest strengths.

But Newman Was Not Always Impressed With Redford’s Work Habits

According to Newman’s memoir, the relationship behind the scenes was not especially close at first.

Newman reportedly became frustrated with Redford’s approach to time and reliability.

He said, “You can’t depend on Redford. You’re never sure he’s going to be there. That’s simply discourteous.”

The comment revealed a clear difference between the two men.

Their Personalities Were Almost Opposites

Newman’s daughter, Claire Newman Soderlund, later offered an explanation for the tension.

She believed the issue had less to do with personal dislike and more to do with contrasting working styles.

“My father was very much a stickler for timeliness and Bob, that was never really his strength. It was hard work for dad. He worked very hard at it because he wanted to be good and he wanted to be successful and Bob was more of a free spirit.”

That Difference Created Friction

Newman approached acting with discipline and structure.

He wanted preparation.

He valued punctuality.

He treated the work seriously.

Redford, by contrast, was described as more relaxed and spontaneous.

For someone like Newman, that could be frustrating.

Yet the Difference Also Helped Their Chemistry

The qualities that created tension off set may have helped them on screen.

Newman’s controlled style balanced Redford’s ease.

That contrast made their interactions feel alive.

One actor pushed.

The other relaxed.

The result was a partnership that audiences immediately believed.

The Film Changed Their Relationship

Redford later explained that working on Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid became the beginning of their real friendship.

After Newman’s death, Redford reflected on that period.

“It was just that connection of playing those characters and the fun of it that really began the relationship,” he said.

The film became the bridge between professional collaboration and genuine friendship.

They Began Discovering Common Ground

Redford said that once filming continued, the two men started recognizing shared interests and similarities.

They also discovered differences.

Those differences did not prevent the friendship from growing.

In many ways, they became part of it.

Four Years Later, They Worked Together Again

In 1973, Newman and Redford reunited for The Sting.

The film gave audiences another chance to see the chemistry that had made their first collaboration so successful.

This time, they played con men rather than Western outlaws.

The setting changed.

The energy between them did not.

The Sting Strengthened Their Reputation as a Screen Duo

By then, audiences were already eager to see them together.

Both actors had enormous charisma.

Both had become major stars.

And the combination of their personalities created a kind of effortless appeal that was difficult to reproduce.

Their Friendship Continued Long After the Cameras Stopped

What had begun with professional tension gradually developed into genuine affection.

Newman and Redford eventually became extremely close.

They lived in Connecticut only about a mile apart.

Their families also became close.

Over time, the relationship came to resemble a brotherhood.

They Learned Each Other’s Flaws

Redford later spoke openly about the way they understood one another.

“We both got to know each other’s flaws pretty well. Of course, I outweighed him on that front.”

The line reflected the teasing humor that became central to their friendship.

They did not pretend the other was perfect.

They enjoyed the imperfections.

They Turned Those Flaws Into a Game

Redford explained that they would play tricks on each other.

“But knowing each other’s flaws, we just played them to the hilt and we’d try to trick each other. We’d try to surprise each other, and it was so damn much fun that it became like–it became like a scenario unto itself.”

The relationship had evolved far beyond the early frustrations of the Butch Cassidy set.

Newman Loved to Laugh

Redford also remembered Newman’s sense of humor.

He said Newman loved jokes, especially his own.

Some of them were not particularly good.

That almost made them funnier.

Redford described how Newman’s enjoyment of his own jokes could become contagious.

Redford Remembered the Humor With Great Affection

“Paul really likes to have fun and he loves to laugh and he really especially loves to laugh at his own jokes, and some of them are just really awful. So the fact that he enjoyed them so much, you forget about the joke and you’d start to laugh with him because you’re so caught up in his enjoyment of them.”

The memory revealed how warm their friendship had become.

They Wanted to Make a Third Movie Together

After Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and The Sting, Newman and Redford looked for another project.

Finding the right story proved difficult.

For years, a third collaboration remained an idea rather than a reality.

A Walk in the Woods Almost Became That Third Film

One project came especially close.

Redford became interested in adapting Bill Bryson’s 1998 book A Walk in the Woods.

The story followed two older, out-of-shape men attempting to hike the Appalachian Trail.

Redford immediately thought of Newman.

Redford Chose the Project With Newman in Mind

Speaking in 2015, Redford explained the connection.

“It started with Paul, because Paul and I had been looking for a third film to do together. A lot of time had gone by, and I just couldn’t find it. When I read this book… I thought of Paul right away.”

It seemed like a natural fit for the two longtime friends.

But Newman Was Not Sure He Could Handle the Physical Demands

Redford sent him the book.

Newman considered the project.

Ultimately, he was not confident he could manage the physical requirements.

The role later went to Nick Nolte.

The third Newman-Redford film never happened.

The Missed Opportunity Became More Poignant After Newman’s Death

Paul Newman died of lung cancer in 2008.

By then, his friendship with Redford had lasted decades.

The early tension had long since been replaced by mutual affection and shared history.

Redford Spoke About Newman With Deep Emotion

After Newman’s death, Redford reflected on the connection they had built.

He described a friendship that grew from acting into something much more personal.

The characters they played helped start it.

Life outside the movies strengthened it.

Their Families Became Part of the Bond

The closeness was not limited to the two actors.

Their families knew each other well.

Living nearby made the friendship easier to maintain away from Hollywood.

That proximity helped turn a professional relationship into an everyday one.

They Were More Like Brothers Than Co-Stars

By the later years of their friendship, that description felt more appropriate.

They teased each other.

They knew each other’s weaknesses.

They shared experiences that few other people could fully understand.

They had become part of one another’s lives.

Their Friendship Was More Interesting Because It Was Not Perfect

The early friction makes the later closeness more meaningful.

Newman was frustrated by Redford.

Redford was different from Newman in important ways.

Yet neither man needed the other to be identical to him.

They eventually learned how to enjoy those differences.

The On-Screen Partnership Was Built on Contrast

Butch and Sundance worked because they were not the same person.

The same was true of Newman and Redford.

One was more structured.

One was more free-spirited.

One valued punctuality intensely.

The other was less concerned by it.

That contrast helped create energy between them.

Newman’s Complaint Was Not the Whole Story

It would be easy to focus only on his criticism that Redford could not always be depended on.

But that quote captured one moment in a relationship that eventually lasted for decades.

The full story is much larger.

Frustration gave way to respect.

Respect gave way to friendship.

Redford’s Memories Show How Much Changed

When Redford spoke after Newman’s death, there was no sense that the early resentments defined their relationship.

He remembered laughter.

Practical jokes.

Shared interests.

The ability to recognize and enjoy each other’s flaws.

That Growth Mirrors the Best Friendships

Strong friendships do not always begin smoothly.

Sometimes they are built through disagreement.

People discover the limits of each other’s patience.

They learn habits they dislike.

Then, if the connection is strong enough, those imperfections become part of the relationship rather than threats to it.

Newman and Redford Eventually Reached That Point

They knew one another well enough to make fun of the things that once caused tension.

What might have been irritating early on later became material for jokes.

That kind of familiarity only develops over time.

Their Two Films Became Part of Cinema History

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and The Sting remain inseparable from the Newman-Redford partnership.

Both movies benefited from the same central appeal.

Audiences liked watching these two men interact.

They believed the friendship.

They enjoyed the competition.

They responded to the humor.

They Never Needed a Third Film to Prove the Connection

Fans would have welcomed another collaboration.

Both actors wanted one.

But the two movies they completed together were enough to establish the partnership permanently.

The fact that they kept looking for another project showed how much they enjoyed working together.

A Walk in the Woods Could Have Been a Perfect Final Chapter

The idea of Newman and Redford playing two aging friends on a difficult journey had obvious appeal.

It would have allowed their real-life friendship to inform the story in a new way.

But circumstances prevented it.

Sometimes the most anticipated projects remain only possibilities.

Redford Still Carried Newman Into the Film’s History

Even though Newman never appeared in A Walk in the Woods, the project remained connected to him.

Redford had selected it partly because he saw his friend in the story.

That gives the eventual film an additional emotional layer.

Their Relationship Survived the Pressures of Fame

Both men became Hollywood legends.

Both had long careers.

Both developed identities far beyond the films they made together.

Yet their friendship endured.

That is notable in an industry where professional relationships can disappear quickly.

They Did Not Need to Be Constantly Seen Together

The friendship was not built around publicity.

They did not need to constantly promote themselves as a famous duo.

Much of their bond existed away from cameras.

That may have helped it last.

Newman’s Marriage to Joanne Woodward Was Also Part of His Life Away From the Spotlight

Newman’s family life remained central to him.

His daughter Claire later helped explain the differences between her father and Redford.

Her comments offered a more personal view of Newman’s work habits.

They also helped place the early friction in context.

The Tension Was About Work More Than Personal Hostility

Newman wanted people to arrive on time.

He prepared carefully.

Redford operated differently.

That mismatch could create frustration without necessarily meaning the two men disliked each other.

As they learned more about one another, the tension softened.

Their Chemistry Was a Testament to Their Acting

Even during the period when the relationship was not yet close, audiences saw two men who seemed like lifelong friends.

That says something about their skill.

They could create intimacy before it fully existed in real life.

Later, reality caught up with the performance.

The Fictional Friendship Came First

Butch and Sundance were close before Newman and Redford were.

The actors had to create that bond for the camera.

Then, through the process of making the film, a real bond began to emerge.

That makes their story unusually fitting.

The Roles Helped Create the Friendship They Were Pretending to Have

Redford himself suggested as much when he described the connection that began through playing those characters.

The fun of the work opened the door.

The shared experiences that followed made the relationship real.

They Became Linked in the Public Imagination

Even though each actor had many other major roles, mentioning one often brought the other to mind.

That is the power of a great screen partnership.

It becomes part of both careers.

Newman’s Resentment Eventually Became a Footnote

What once bothered him did not prevent the relationship from developing.

In the larger story, the frustration became almost charming.

It showed that their friendship was not manufactured.

It had to grow.

Redford Remembered Newman’s Imperfections With Love

The bad jokes.

The teasing.

The flaws.

These were not things Redford tried to hide when talking about his friend.

They were exactly the things he remembered most fondly.

That Is Often What Remains After Someone Is Gone

People rarely miss perfection.

They miss habits.

They miss jokes.

They miss the little irritations that once seemed ordinary.

Redford’s memories of Newman carried that feeling.

Paul Newman and Robert Redford Created More Than Two Great Movies

They created a partnership that became part of Hollywood mythology.

It began with uncertainty.

There were frustrations.

There were differences in personality and work habits.

But over time, those differences became part of a friendship that lasted for decades.

Their Story Is More Interesting Because It Changed

If they had been instant best friends, the story would be simpler.

Instead, it evolved.

Newman initially resented parts of Redford’s behavior.

He even preferred the role Redford played.

Yet the younger actor became one of the closest friends of his life.

Their Friendship Eventually Outgrew the Movies

Hollywood brought them together.

But Hollywood was not the only thing keeping them connected.

They became neighbors.

Their families grew close.

They continued looking for opportunities to work together.

They stayed friends long after the cameras stopped rolling.

Their Two Most Famous Collaborations Still Capture What Made Them Special

Watch Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid today and the chemistry is still there.

Watch The Sting and the same playful energy returns.

Knowing that the men behind those performances eventually became so close makes the films feel even richer.

The Early Tension Did Not Weaken Their Legacy

If anything, it makes the relationship feel more genuine.

Friendship did not come automatically.

It developed through work, differences, humor, and time.

That is what turned two movie stars into something closer to brothers.

Paul Newman and Robert Redford Became One of Hollywood’s Timeless Duos

Newman may once have been irritated by Redford’s relaxed approach.

He may have wished he could play Sundance himself.

But those early frustrations did not define what came later.

The two actors found common ground.

They made unforgettable films.

They teased each other.

They lived near one another.

And they built a friendship that lasted until Newman’s death in 2008.

What audiences first believed on screen eventually became true off screen as well.

Butch and Sundance looked like lifelong friends.

In time, Paul Newman and Robert Redford became something very close to that themselves.