The year now coming to an end also left its mark on global culture, with the loss of emblematic figures who shaped intellectual, artistic, and public life.

From Pope Francis and Robert Redford to Claudia Cardinale and Giorgio Armani, the following are well-known figures who passed away during 2025.

JANUARY

• 1: David LODGE, 89, British writer, best known for the novel Small World, part of a trilogy that sarcastically depicts the academic world.
• 2: Rosita MISSOnI, 93, Italian designer, co-founder of the fashion house bearing her name, famous for its vibrant, boldly patterned style.
• 7: Jean-Marie LE PEN, 96, figure of the French far right and founder of the National Front (FN), later renamed National Rally (RN).
• 13: Oliviero TOSCANI, 82, Italian photographer, associated with major advertising campaigns for the Italian fashion house Benetton, which also sparked considerable criticism.
• 16: David LYNCH, 78, American director, writer, and painter, nominated for an Oscar for Blue Velvet, The Elephant Man, and Mulholland Drive.
• 16: Joan PLOWRIGHT, 95, British actress, married to Laurence Olivier, with a brilliant career in theatre, film, and television spanning seven decades.
• 20: Bertrand BLIER, 85, French filmmaker, director of Les Valseuses (Going Places) and Tenue de soirée (Evening Wear).
• 22: Jean-François KAHN, 86, French journalist, founder of the magazines L’Événement du Jeudi and Marianne.
• 22: Mauricio FUNES, 65, former president of El Salvador.
• 30: Marianne FAITHFULL, 78, iconic singer of Swinging London and later of the New York punk scene.

FEBRUARY

• 1: Horst KÖHLER, 81, former Federal President of Germany. Köhler served as head of state from 2004 to 2010, when he unexpectedly resigned. He was the first German federal president unaffiliated with a political party and had previously served as head of the German delegation in the Maastricht Treaty negotiations and as managing director of the International Monetary Fund.
• 4: Karim AGA KHAN, 88, philanthropist and spiritual leader of the world’s 15 million Ismaili Muslims, also known for his success as a racehorse owner.
• 8: Sam NUJOMA, 95, first president of Namibia.
• 9: Tom ROBBINS, 92, American writer whose novels read like literary LSD, full of fantastical characters, manic metaphors, and light-hearted countercultural humor.
• 14: Carlos DIEGUES, 84, one of Brazil’s greatest filmmakers and an emblematic figure of the Cinema Novo movement.
• 17: Rick BUCKLER, 69, drummer of the legendary British rock band The Jam.
• 18: Gene HACKMAN, 95, American actor, twice awarded the Oscar for The French Connection and Unforgiven.
• 29: Richard CHAMBERLAIN, 90, American actor, Emmy nominee, widely known from the TV series Dr. Kildare and the miniseries Shōgun and The Thorn Birds.

APRIL

• 1: Val KILMER, 65, American actor, known for Top Gun, Batman Forever, and The Doors.
• 4: Amadou BAGAYOKO, 70, singer from Mali, who formed the legendary blind musicians’ duo Amadou & Mariam with his beloved partner.
• 13: Mario VARGAS LLOSA, 89, Spanish-Peruvian writer, Nobel Prize in Literature laureate in 2010.
• 21: Jorge Mario BERGOGLIO, 88, elected pope in 2013. Born in Argentina, he was the first pontiff from Latin America and the first to choose the name “Francis.” According to analysts and the hearts of millions of believers alike, he was “the pope of the poor,” the Holy Father of Catholics who emphasized aid and solidarity toward migrants, the marginalized, and the forgotten.
• 22: Zurab TSERETELI, 91, famous Russian sculptor of Georgian origin, known for his monumental works.
• 25: Virginia GIUFFRE, 41, who had accused American financier Jeffrey Epstein and Britain’s Prince Andrew of sexual abuse, committed suicide at her home in Australia.

MAY

• 13: José “Pepe” MUJICA, 89, former president of Uruguay.
• 19: Yuri GRIGOROVICH, 98, historic choreographer of Moscow’s Bolshoi Theatre.
• 23: Sebastião SALGADO, 81, renowned Brazilian photojournalist, known for depicting wars, human tragedies, environmental disasters, and the Amazon rainforest in black and white.
• 23: Mohammed LAKHDAR HAMINA, 95, Algerian director and producer, the only Arab and African filmmaker to be awarded at Cannes, winning two major prizes: Best First Work for Le vent des Aurès (1967) and the Palme d’Or for Chronicle of the Years of Fire (1975).
• 24: Marcel OPHÜLS, 97, French master of historical documentary film, Oscar winner, creator of The Sorrow and the Pity about Vichy France.
• 30: Étienne-Émile BAULIEU, 98, French physician and researcher, inventor of the abortion pill, a lifelong defender of progress made possible through science.

JUNE

• 3: Edmund WHITE, 85, American writer, emblematic figure of queer literature.
• 9: Frederick FORSYTH, 86, British writer, one of the masters of the espionage novel.
• 11: Brian WILSON, 82, American musician, co-founder and creative force of the Beach Boys.
• 23: Lea MASSARI, 91, Italian actress, a leading figure of Italian and French cinema from 1957 for three decades.
• 24: Bobby SHERMAN, 81, American singer and actor, teen idol with a string of hits in the late 1960s and early 1970s.
• 26: Lalo SCHIFRIN, 93, Argentine-American composer of the Mission: Impossible theme and many other films and series, including Dirty Harry (1971), recipient of an honorary Oscar.

JULY

• 22: Ozzy OSBOURNE, 76, British singer of Black Sabbath, one of rock music’s most legendary figures.
• 24: Hulk HOGAN, 71, American wrestling legend and actor.
• 31: Bob WILSON, 83, American director, known for his original creations in theatre and opera.

AUGUST

• 5: Ion ILIESCU, 95, former president of Romania, called the “father figure” of the Romanian nation by many, despite being accused of responsibility for the country’s chaotic transition from communism to democracy.
• 7: Jim LOVELL, 97, American NASA astronaut who commanded the famous Apollo 13 mission, which orbited the Moon but nearly ended in disaster after an in-flight explosion in 1970 before returning safely to Earth.
• 17: Terence STAMP, 87, English actor, known for roles in films including Superman and The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert.
• 29: Rodion SHCHEDRIN, 92, Russian composer who wrote music for world-famous ballets.

SEPTEMBER

• 4: Giorgio ARMANI, 91, world-renowned Italian fashion designer whose style and design choices were synonymous with refinement and unique elegance worldwide.
• 6: Rosa ROISINBLIT, 106, emblematic figure of the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo and of the struggle against dictatorship in Argentina, whose officials she helped bring before the courts.
• 6: Rick DAVIES, 81, singer and co-founder of the British rock band Supertramp.
• 6: David BALTIMORE, 87, American biologist awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 1975 for his study of retroviruses.
• 10: Charlie KIRK, 31, American conservative influencer with major influence, ally and propagandist of President Trump among young people, murdered during a public event at a university in Utah, USA.
• 16: Robert REDFORD, 89, American actor, director, producer, ardent supporter of independent cinema through the Sundance Institute, environmentalist and activist, who for six decades embodied a luminous side of America.
• 23: Claudia CARDINALE, 87, renowned Italian actress, one of the strongest symbols of the “golden age” of Italian cinema.

OCTOBER

• 1: Jane GOODALL, 91, British primatologist and activist who turned her childhood passion for wild animals into a lifelong struggle to protect the environment.
• 5: Jilly COOPER, 88, British novelist, author of works such as Rivals and Riders.
• 10: John LODGE, 82, singer and bassist of the British rock band The Moody Blues.
• 11: Diane KEATON, 79, American actress, Academy Award winner for Best Actress in 1978 for Annie Hall.
• 16: Ace FREHLEY, 74, American guitarist and co-founder of the band Kiss.
• 18: Chen Ning YANG, 103, Chinese-American physicist, one of the world’s most renowned, Nobel Prize laureate in 1957.
• 25: Björn ANDRESEN, 70, Swedish actor, known for his role as Tadzio in Death in Venice (1971).
• 26: Jack DEJOHNETTE, 83, American jazz drummer, honored as one of the true greats of the genre.
• 27: Prunella SCALES, 93, British actress, best known for her role as Sybil Fawlty in the comedy series Fawlty Towers.
• 31: Fatos NANO, 73, socialist former prime minister of Albania and historic leader of the Albanian left after the fall of communism.

NOVEMBER

• 3: Dick CHENEY, 84, former vice president of U.S. President George W. Bush (2001–2009), regarded as one of the most powerful vice presidents in American history.
• 6: James WATSON, 97, Nobel Prize-winning American biologist who revolutionized science by discovering, with Francis Crick, the structure of DNA.
• 21: Ornella VANONI, 91, renowned Italian singer.
• 24: Jimmy CLIFF, 81, legendary Jamaican singer who, together with Bob Marley, popularized reggae, ska, and rocksteady.
• 29: Tom STOPPARD, 88, British playwright who won an Oscar and a Golden Globe for the screenplay of Shakespeare in Love.

DECEMBER

• 3: Steve CROPPER, 84, American guitarist, creator of the Memphis Soul sound that revolutionized soul music.
• 5: Frank GEHRY, 96, American-Canadian architect, famous for iconic buildings such as the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao, the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, and the Dancing House in Prague—works that demonstrated his boldness and revolutionized architectural history by breaking its boundaries with art.
• 6: Martin PARR, 73, British documentary photographer, known for his photographs of tourists, quirky explorations of their way of life.
• 14: Rob REINER, 78, American director of films such as When Harry Met Sally, A Few Good Men, and The American President, and his wife, photographer-producer Michelle Singer, 68, who were found stabbed in their home.
• 16: Anthony PRICE, 80, British fashion designer who dressed many pop and rock stars throughout his career.
• 18: Peter ARNETT, 91, renowned American war correspondent, Pulitzer Prize winner for his 1966 Vietnam reporting, who covered most of the conflicts of the late 20th century.
• 22: Chris REA, 74, British singer, known for hits such as The Road to Hell, Josephine, and Driving Home for Christmas.
• 25: Perry BAMONTE, 65, British musician, guitarist and keyboardist of The Cure.
• 28: Brigitte BARDOT, 91, legendary French actress, feminist symbol of the 1960s, and ardent animal-rights advocate.