Robert Redford made generations of women swoon on and off-screen — just check out some of his legendary A-list leading ladies

Robert Redford was more than just a pretty face — he was also one of the most talented actors of his generation. But that pretty face made him an iconic sex symbol for the ages and landed him countless leading-man roles opposite some of Hollywood’s most A-list actresses, decade after decade. Look back at some of the most romantic films Redford, who died Sept. 16 at age 89, starred in — and perhaps add a few to your streaming queue this weekend.

Robert Redford with Jane Fonda in ‘Barefoot in the Park’

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Jane Fonda and Robert Redford starred in five movies together between 1960 and 2017, and Fonda loved them all: “He is so handsome and just such a wonderful human being. Every movie I made with him, I developed a crush on him,” she once said.

The one they’re perhaps best known for is 1967’s Barefoot in the Park, in which they played young newlyweds who have very different personalities but plenty of chemistry.

“In Barefoot in the Park, I couldn’t keep my hands off of him. I was constantly forcing myself on him,” Fonda has joked of the man who became her dear friend; Redford, for his part, claimed to have been oblivious: “I didn’t know she was in love with me.”

Robert Redford with Barbra Streisand in ‘The Way We Were’

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Say it with us … “Your girl is lovely, Hubbell.”

Ranked No. 6 on the American Film Institute’s list of 100 greatest romances, the film starred Robert Redford and Barbra Streisand as politically and personally opposite people who can’t help their attraction to each other — but in the end, their love can’t overcome their differences.

With an epic Oscar-winning title song by Streisand and tear-jerking scenes aplenty, this film is a perennial favorite and often referred to in pop culture.

Redford recalled to Oprah Winfrey of working with Streisand, “I remember the fun we had. I remember liking her energy and her spirit, it was wonderful to play off of. I also really enjoyed kidding her. She was fun to kid.”

Streisand praised his talent when presenting him with the Chaplin Award years later: “You never quite know what he’s really thinking, and that makes him fascinating to watch on screen. Bob understands the power of restraint. You’re never going to get it all, and that’s the secret, I think. That’s the mystery. That’s what makes you want to keep looking at him.”

Robert Redford with Meryl Streep in ‘Out of Africa’

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In yet another sweeping tale of two opposites finding common ground (and a lot of chemistry), Robert Redford starred as a hunter opposite Meryl Streep’s aristocrat in what is now Kenya in the 1930s. Both free spirits and determined in their own ways, the two eventually can’t deny their connection — which means you know there will be passionate romance and heartbreak ahead.

Streep confirmed to Oprah Winfrey later that Redford was her favorite onscreen kiss and told the Sun-Sentinel that she developed a “huge crush” on him during filming, in part because he was such a good listener.

Redford once told the New York Times, “I’ve always had a rather romantic view of women: I liked them and I liked putting them on a pedestal to some degree.”

Robert Redford with Glenn Close in ‘The Natural’

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Robert Redford’s baseball player Roy Hobbs draws strength and inspiration from his relationship with his high school love Iris, who reappears after years apart when he returns to the major leagues after a shocking injury. Their path to reconciliation isn’t always smooth, but it is romantic — and Close ranked Redford No. 1 of all her movie husbands for what she felt was the film’s realistic depiction of her caution as she lets Hobbs back into her life.

As Close recalled to Vulture of their characters’ initial reacquaintance, “I don’t know how many women in movies have actually thrown Robert Redford out of their apartment!”

Robert Redford with Mia Farrow in ‘The Great Gatsby’

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The 1974 adaptation of the classic F. Scott Fitzgerald novel wasn’t critically beloved, but Robert Redford and Mia Farrow sure looked pretty as star-crossed lovers in decadent 1920s attire.

Robert Redford with Faye Dunaway in ‘Three Days of the Condor’

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Faye Dunaway joked on a British talk show in 2008 that it was difficult to muster up her character’s fear at being held hostage by Robert Redford’s CIA analyst character: “You’d just say, ‘Yes, fine, do it’ — because he’s so gorgeous!”

Robert Redford with Demi Moore in ‘Indecent Proposal’

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While perhaps not as swoonworthy as some of the other romances on this list (Robert Redford plays a wealthy man who offers Demi Moore and her husband, played by Woody Harrelson, $1 million to let him spend the night with Moore), the two had heat onscreen.

But screenwriter Amy Holden Jones told the New York Post that Redford’s good looks and charm made it necessary to rewrite the ending, which had Moore’s character walking away from Redford’s: “He had that changed, because Robert Redford couldn’t be left.”

Robert Redford with Natalie Wood in ‘Inside Daisy Clover’

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The role that launched Robert Redford’s film career was as a conflicted husband to Natalie Wood’s former child star, and though the film was not a big hit, it cemented a friendship that had begun when they crossed paths in high school. Redford was best man at Wood’s second wedding and remembered her fondly in a retrospective for Turner Classic Movies.

Robert Redford with Kristin Scott Thomas in ‘The Horse Whisperer’

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Robert Redford directed this 1998 drama about a mother (Kristin Scott Thomas) trying to help her daughter overcome trauma from a riding accident by bringing her to Montana, where Redford’s rancher has a gift for healing horses and human hearts. He and Scott develop an attraction — but as she’s a city girl and he’s a country boy, is their relationship doomed?

Redford illustrated their characters’ mutual desire with a slow dance, and explained his choice to The Morning Call: “I’m so glad to hear that women think that scene is sexy … I wondered, ‘How do I illustrate this romance that’s about heat and desire?’ Dancing is one of the sexiest things two people can do. Nudity is now de rigueur in every film. I wanted the audience to see love in another way.”

Robert Redford and Betty White

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Okay, so they never shared the screen, but Betty White was on camera many times admitting to an ongoing crush on Redford, telling The Insider, “My answer to anything under the sun, like, ‘What have you not done in the business that you’ve always wanted to do?’ is: ‘Robert Redford.’ ”

At 99 years old, White repeated the sentiment to PEOPLE: “I’ve heard Ryan [Reynolds] can’t get over his thing for me … but Robert Redford is The One.”

“She made us all laugh, including me,” Redford said in a statement to PEOPLE after her death. “Betty lived life devoted to her craft and her love of animals. She made us all laugh, including me. I had a crush on her, too!”