Charlie Kirk, Pope Francis, Dick Cheney, Robert Redford...: The celebrities who left us in 2025

Several personalities of great recognition within their fields died this year. From politicians to singers, activists, scientists, actors, athletes, novelists and fashion designers.

Names such as Pope Francis, Vice President Dick Cheney, conservative activist Charlie Kirk, boxer George Foreman, singer Ozzy Osbourne, actors Val Kilmer and Robert Redford and Peruvian writer Mario Vargas Llosa. All of them left us in 2025.

Jean-Marie Le Pen

Once the emblem of the conservative movement (National Front) in French politics, Jean-Marie Le Pen, died on January 7 at the age of 95.

David Lynch

Film director, screenwriter, artist, actor and producer, David Lynch died Jan. 15 at 78. His film legacy includes cult films such as Mulholland Drive and series such as Twin Peaks, among others.

Gene Hackman

Gene Hackman and his wife, pianist Betsy Arakawa, were found dead in their home, located in the town of Santa Fe (New Mexico), on February 26, although the death of the actor occurred days earlier, like that of his spouse. The actor -who was part of the cast of films such as Superman and its sequels or Enemy of the State- was 95 years old.

George Foreman

One of the all-time boxers, George Foreman, died March 21 at age 76. He will be remembered for co-starring in one of the most iconic boxing fights against Muhammad Ali in 1974.

Val Kilmer

The actor who played characters like Tom Iceman Kazansky in Top Gun, Bruce Wayne and his alter ego Batman in Batman Forever and Jim Morrison in The Doors, Val Kilmer, died April 1 at age 65.

Mario Vargas Llosa

Mario Vargas Llosa, Peruvian writer with Spanish nationality, died on April 13 at the age of 89. He received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2010 and was a key figure of the Latin American Boom, alongside authors such as Gabriel García Márquez, Julio Cortázar and Carlos Fuentes.

Pope Francis

Pope Francis died on April 21 at the age of 88 and after just over 12 years at the head of the Catholic Church. Under the name Leo XIV, the then Cardinal Robert Prevost was designated by the Holy See as his successor, becoming the first American pope in history.

José Mujica

Former Uruguayan President José Mujica, better known as Pepe Mujica, died May 13 at age 89. He ruled his country for five years, from 2010 to 2015.

Frederick Forsyth

Author of works of espionage and suspense such as The Day of the Jackal or The Odessa Dossier, British writer Frederick Forsyth died June 9 at age 86.

Brian Wilson

At 82, Brian Wilson, co-founder and vocalist of the musical group The Beach Boys, died June 11. He projected in his music the essence of the Californian youth of the 1960s.

Violeta Barrios de Chamorro

Violeta Barrios de Chamorro, who governed Nicaragua from 1990 to 1997 and was the first woman elected president in the Americas, died on June 14 at age 95. She has been one of the staunchest opponents of dictator Daniel Ortega.

Diogo Jota

Portuguese footballer Diogo Jota died on July 3 at the age of 28 in a traffic accident in the province of Zamora (Spain). He was accompanied by his brother André, also a footballer, who also died.

Felix Baumgartner

Austrian extreme athlete Felix Baumgartner died on July 17 at the age of 56 after suffering an accident while paragliding in Italy. He will be remembered for being the first person to jump from the stratosphere, specifically from 128,000 feet.

Ozzy Osbourne

The lead singer of the heavy metal band Black Sabbath, Ozzy Osbourne, died on July 22 at the age of 76. A few days earlier, the group's final performance before retiring from the music scene took place.

Hulk Hogan

Hulk Hogan, the iconic face of professional wrestling in the 1980s, died July 24 at age 71. He also appeared in several films and television shows during his career.

Eddie Palmieri

Eddie Palmieri, who revolutionized Latin music and contributed greatly to the salsa explosion in New York, died on August 6 at the age of 88. The son of Puerto Ricans, Palmieri was born in New York, in the Harlem neighborhood and, in 1961, founded La Perfecta.

Jim Lovell

Astronaut Jim Lovell died Aug. 7 at age 97. He was the commander of the Apollo 13 mission, which almost ended in catastrophe in 1970 after a mid-flight explosion.

Miguel Uribe Turbay

After two months in hospital in critical condition after being shot at a rally, Colombian presidential candidate Miguel Uribe Turbay died on August 11 at the age of 39. He was one of President Gustavo Petro's biggest critics.

Giorgio Armani

Designer Giorgio Armani, one of the great references of Italian and world fashion since he founded the Armani group five decades ago, died on September 4 at the age of 91.

Rick Davies

Rick Davies, singer and co-founder of the British rock band Supertramp, died Sept. 6 at age 81, after a more than decade-long battle with a cancer

Charlie Kirk

Charlie Kirk died Sept. 10 at age 31 after being killed while giving an event at Utah Valley University. Shortly after he began, the conservative activist was shot in the neck from long range. The alleged shooter, Tyler James Robinson, is in custody awaiting trial.

Robert Redford

Legendary performer Robert Redford died on September 16 at the age of 89. His filmography includes Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, The Sting and All the President's Men, among others. His last appearance in the seventh art was in the superhero movie Avengers: Endgame.

Claudia Cardinale

Claudia Cardinale died on September 23 at the age of 87. The Italian actress participated in films by renowned Italian directors such as Sergio Leone, Luchino Visconti or Federico Fellini. She appears in the credits of productions such as The Leopard, Rocco and His Brothers and The Pink Panther.

Jane Goodall

Dr. Jane Goodall died on October 1 at the age of 91. The primatologist's research transformed the understanding of chimpanzee behavior.

Diane Keaton

The winner of the Best Actress Oscar in 1978 for her role in Annie Hall, Diane Keaton, died on October 11 at the age of 79. She participated in other major productions such as The Godfather -and its sequels-, Reds, Marvin's Room and Something's Gotta Give, among others.

Dick Cheney

Former vice president during the George W. Bush administration, Dick Cheney, died on November 3 at age 84 due to complications from pneumonia and cardiovascular disease. A key figure in the political landscape over the past four decades, he was one of the most critical voices of Donald Trump within the Republican Party.

Jimmy Cliff

Jamaican Jimmy Cliff, iconic reggae star, died Nov. 24 at 81. He leaves a musical legacy with songs like 'Many Rivers to Cross', 'You Can Get It If You Really Want' and 'The Harder They Come.'

Frank Gehry

Frank Gehry, one of the most recognized figures in contemporary architecture, died Dec. 5 at age 96, after suffering complications from a respiratory illness he was suffering from.

Rob Reiner

Film director Rob Reiner and his wife Michele were found dead on December 14 at their home located in California. Nick Reiner, one of the couple's sons, has been charged with first-degree murder by the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office. The filmmaker leaves behind a filmography that includes films such as When Harry Met Sally... and A Few Good Men, among others.

Perry Bamonte

British guitarist Perry Bamonte, a member of the rock band The Cure, died on December 26 at age 65 after suffering "a brief illness."

Brigitte Bardot

Actress Brigitte Bardot, one of the icons of French cinema in the mid-20th century, died Dec. 28 at 91.