Robert Redford Death: Sundance Kid Killed by Internet Hoax Becoming First 2016 Victim

Robert Redford, one of film history's most handsome actors and among the most versatile filmmakers, has just become a victim of a celebrity death hoax, after the Internet claimed he had been killed in a "golfing accident." It seems The Sundance Kid is the first celebrity to be "killed off" online in 2016.

According to The Independent, on New Year's Eve, Twitter became filled with people commenting on the death of the beloved actor and filmmaker, after an account mocking the British outlet Sky News reported that Redford had died in a freak golfing accident in Santa Monica.

"This is a sick hoax. I just spoke to him and there is no truth to this whatsoever," said Cindy Berger, Redford's longtime publicist, adding that the 79-year-old star was safe and sound at home.

The rumor, which spread like wildfire within a few minutes on Twitter, claimed that the man behind the Sundance Film Festival and the Sundance Channel had fallen off a golf buggy in Southern California and died from the impact.

The Internet has been killing off stars of all ages via rumors for years, and it's turned into something of a tradition ever since online life became prominent in all spheres. These days, the easiest way to make a celebrity death hoax viral is through a website with a name similar to that of a serious news outlet. This leads to confusion, as people think the source has been cleared, when in fact it's just a website with no credibility.

Near the end of 2015, Enstarz released a list of some of the celebrities who had fallen victim to this ancient Internet rite of passage, including entertainment business legends like Cher, Willie Nelson, Carlos Santana, James Earl Jones and even Jackie Chan -- and those are just the ones from last year, with former child star Macaulay Culkin having also been a victim, often, of Internet death.