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Robert Selden Duvall (January 5, 1931–February 15, 2026) was an American actor and filmmaker. With a career spanning seven decades, he is regarded as one of the greatest actors of all time. He received an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, four Golden Globe Awards, two Primetime Emmy Awards, and a Screen Actors Guild Award.
Duvall began his career on television with minor roles in the 1960s on The Defenders, Playhouse 90, and Armstrong Circle Theatre. He made his Broadway debut in the play Wait Until Dark in 1966. He returned to the stage in David Mamet's play American Buffalo in 1977, earning a Drama Desk Award for Outstandi
Robert Selden Duvall (January 5, 1931–February 15, 2026) was an American actor and filmmaker. With a career spanning seven decades, he is regarded as one of the greatest actors of all time. He received an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, four Golden Globe Awards, two Primetime Emmy Awards, and a Screen Actors Guild Award.
Duvall began his career on television with minor roles in the 1960s on The Defenders, Playhouse 90, and Armstrong Circle Theatre. He made his Broadway debut in the play Wait Until Dark in 1966. He returned to the stage in David Mamet's play American Buffalo in 1977, earning a Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Play nomination. He made his feature film debut portraying Boo Radley in To Kill a Mockingbird (1962). His other early roles included Captain Newman, M.D. (1963), Bullitt (1968), True Grit (1969), M*A*S*H (1970), THX 1138 (1971), Joe Kidd (1972), and Tomorrow (1972), the last of which was developed at the Actors Studio and was his personal favorite.
He won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance as an alcoholic former country music star in “Tender Mercies” (1983). His other Oscar-nominated films included The Godfather (1972), Apocalypse Now (1979), The Great Santini (1979), The Apostle (1997), A Civil Action (1998), and The Judge (2014). His other notable films included; “The Outfit” (1973), “The Godfather Part II” (1974), “The Conversation” (1974), “Network” (1976), “True Confessions” (1981), “The Natural” (1984), “Colors” (1988 film) (1988), “Days of Thunder” (1990), “Rambling Rose” (1991), “Falling Down” (1993), “The Paper” (1994), “Sling Blade” (1996), “Gone in 60 Seconds” (2000), “Open Range” (2003), “Crazy Heart” (2009), “Get Low” (2010), “Jack Reacher” (2012), “Widows” (2018), and “Hustle” (2022).
Throughout his career, Duvall also starred in numerous television productions. He won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Limited Series and Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series for the AMC limited series Broken Trail (2006). His other Emmy-nominated roles included the CBS miniseries Lonesome Dove (1989), the HBO film Stalin (1992), and the TNT film The Man Who Captured Eichmann (1996).
Robert Selden Duvall was born January 5, 1931, in San Diego, California, to Mildred Virginia Duvall (née Hart), an amateur actress, and Rear Admiral William Howard Duvall of the United States Navy. The second of three sons, he grew up alongside an elder brother, William Jr., and a younger brother, John, who later became an entertainment lawyer. Through his mother, he was related to General Robert E. Lee and the Lee family of Virginia, while his father descended from early Maryland settler Mareen Duvall.
Duvall was raised in the Christian Science religion, though he later noted that he did not attend church. He spent much of his childhood in Annapolis, Maryland, where his father was stationed at the United States Naval Academy. He recalled, “I was a Navy brat. My father started at the Academy when he was 16, made captain at 39 and retired as a rear admiral.” He attended Severn School in Severna Park, Maryland, and The Principia in St. Louis, Missouri, before graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in drama from Principia College in Elsah, Illinois, in 1953.
His father had expected him to attend the Naval Academy, but Duvall said, “I was terrible at everything but acting—I could barely get through school.” He instead served in the United States Army after the Korean War, from August 19, 1953, to August 20, 1954, leaving as private first class. “That's led to some confusion in the press,” he explained in 1984, “Some stories have me shooting it out with the Commies from a foxhole over in Frozen Chosin. Pork Chop Hill stuff. Hell, I barely qualified with the M-1 rifle in basic training.” While stationed at Camp Gordon in Georgia, he appeared in an amateur production of the comedy Room Service in nearby Augusta.
In the winter of 1955, Duvall attended the Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre in New York City, studying under Sanford Meisner on the G.I. Bill. His classmates included Dustin Hoffman, Gene Hackman, and James Caan. While training, he worked as a Manhattan post office clerk. Until his death, he remained close friends with fellow California-born actors Hoffman and Hackman (who died in 2025), whom he had known since their years as struggling actors. In 1955, Duvall roomed with Hoffman in a New York City while they studied together at the Playhouse, and around the same time also shared accommodation with Hackman while working odd jobs such as clerking at Macy's, sorting mail, and driving a truck.
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Tags: Actor (37), American (9), Born 1931 (7), Male (4), Died 2026 (3), The Godfather (3), Legend (3), Oscar Winner (2), San Diego California USA (1), M*A*S*H Actors Who Served In The Military (1), Show Biz Republican (1), Oscar Winning Actors In The Military (1), Directors In The Military (1), Writers In The Military (1), 4 X BAFTA Awards (Best Actor In A Supporting Role) Nominee (1), Privileged (1), Oscar Winning Actor (1), Born January 5 (1), Born In California (1), January 5 (1)
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