Barbra Streisand pays moving tribute to co-star Robert Redford at 2026 Oscars

Barbra Streisand remembered her late friend and collaborator, Robert Redford, at the 2026 Academy Awards.

During the In Memoriam section at the 2026 Oscars, Streisand performed on The Way We Were, the title song of her 1973 romantic drama film.

The 83-year-old American singer and actress portrayed Katie Morosky in the Sydney Pollack-directed film opposite Redford, who played Hubbell. They were mismatched lovers in the film.

Undoubtedly, the film was a success but the song The Way We Were also became a big hit as it secured top position on Billboard along with song of the year at the 1974 Grammys.

As Streisand took to the stage, she told the audience that Redford first rejected his role because he thought his character “had no backbone.”

She said, “Now, Bob had real backbone on and off the screen. He spoke up to defend freedom of the press, protect the environment and encouraged new voices at his Sundance Institute — some of whom are up for Oscars tonight, which is so great.”

“He was thoughtful and bold. I called him an intellectual cowboy who blazed his own trail,” the actor of A Star Is Born gushed.

“I miss him now more than ever, even though he loved teasing me. He’d call me Babs, and I’d say, ‘Bob, you know, do I look like a Babs? I’m not a Babs!” Streisand shared.

For those unaware, Redford, the celebrated actor, director and producer, embraced death in his sleep at the age of 89 at his home in Sundance, Utah, on September 16, 2025.