Robert Duvall died “peacefully” at home, wife says

Robert Duvall, the Oscar-winning actor whose career stretched across six decades and included iconic roles in The Godfather, Apocalypse Now and Tender Mercies, has died. He was 95. Duvall died “peacefully” at his home in Middleburg, Virginia on Sunday, a public relations statement said on behalf of his wife, Luciana Pedraza.

Born in San Diego, the son of a career naval officer, Duvall served in the army during the Korean War, attended Principia College in Illinois and later moved to New York to study drama under Sanford Meisner. Early in his career he shared an apartment with Dustin Hoffman and socialized with Gene Hackman, who died last year. Duvall’s stage work led to a small but pivotal film role as Arthur “Boo” Radley in To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)—a part he later honored by naming a dog “Boo.”

Robert Duvall’s most iconic roles and awards

Duvall burst into wider recognition with a string of memorable film parts. He earned his first Academy Award nomination for playing Tom Hagen, the Corleone family consigliere, in Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather (1972) and reprised that role in The Godfather Part II.

He received further Oscar nods for a range of performances, including The Great Santini and his portrayal of Lt. Col. Kilgore in Apocalypse Now, where he delivered the oft-quoted line, “I love the smell of napalm in the morning.”

Duvall won the Academy Award for Best Actor for Tender Mercies (1983). In which he played a country singer and performed the music himself. Duvall also appeared in True Grit opposite John Wayne, MAS*H, George Lucas’ THX 1138, Network, the TV miniseries Lonesome Dove. And later films such as Open Range, Jack Reacher and Widows. He earned his final Oscar nomination at age 84 for The Judge (2014).

Filmmaking, historical roles and career highlights

Beyond acting, Duvall wrote, directed and starred in The Apostle (1997), earning another Oscar nomination, and later directed Assassination Tango and Wild Horses. He took on many historical figures onscreen, portraying Robert E. Lee in Gods and Generals, Joseph Stalin in the HBO movie Stalin, and Nazi war criminal Adolf Eichmann in The Man Who Captured Eichmann.

Duvall notably skipped The Godfather Part III (1990) over a pay dispute with Coppola. He told Bob Costas that the offer was unacceptable compared with what Al Pacino would receive. And later called his decision “a matter of principle” in an interview with Larry King.

Personal life and public honors

Married four times, Duvall’s final marriage was to Argentinian actress-director Luciana Pedraza. He remained active late into life. And his career earned him many honors, including the National Medal of Arts in 2004.

Duvall’s representatives said no formal service will be held. Instead, the family asked that anyone who wishes to honor his memory do so in ways that reflected the life he lived.

“Watching a great film, telling a good story around a table with friends, or taking a drive in the countryside to appreciate the world’s beauty.”

Legacy of a towering screen presence

Robert Duvall’s body of work—from playing Tom Hagen and Lt. Col. Kilgore to crafting The Apostle. It marked him as one of the most versatile and enduring actors of his generation. His roles in both film and television, his awards and nominations. And his work behind the camera leave a deep imprint on American cinema.

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