"Pete's Dragon" actor Robert Redford hopes to inspire viewers

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- Hollywood veteran Robert Redford hopes to bring magical inspiration to audiences with his new film "Pete's Dragon."

Redford, 79, is a decorated Hollywood presence who has starred and directed numerous films throughout his long career. His newest project, "Pete's Dragon," opened in theaters on Friday.

Redford agreed to star in the family film when director David Lowery approached him about working on the movie. He said he did the film for his grandchildren.

"I have a family, and my family has a family. The span of my grandkids goes from 5 years old, 7 years old to 24 years old so there's a big span there, and to make a film like this that covers that amount of time, it just feels good," Redford said.

"Pete's Dragon" was filmed in New Zealand, and Redford said it was bittersweet working there.

"It was great. It was also sad because I remember as a kid growing up in Los Angeles during the Second World War, it looked like New Zealand and that there were wide-open spaces. There were no freeways. There were no skyscrapers. People were friendly. There was an innocence to the place," Redford said.

Redford hopes that viewers feel inspired after watching the movie.

"I hope they take away the idea that the value of the imagination and feeding the imagination with stories like this. Remembering how valuable the word magic was as a child. Try to keep that alive in your life," Redford said.

"Pete's Dragon" is rated PG.