For background, in an emotional Instagram post on May 25, 2025, Willie Robertson spoke candidly about the lasting impact his father, Phil Robertson, had had on him and his entire family, and shared his father’s last words to him. The post was published on the day of Phil’s death at 79 years old, following an Alzheimer’s disease diagnosis.
In his Instagram post, which got over 146,000 likes, Willie shared photos from his childhood and mused about how his father was “always looking at me funny,” saying that he was “prolly trying to figure out, ‘How did this boy turn out like this?'” Willie added that when he burst out into a spontaneous “break dance routine” for his father, “He just looked strangely at me and said, ‘Well, I’ve never seen anything quite like that!'”
Continuing, Willie recounted how near the end of Phil’s life, Willie “came into his room and the floor was freshly mopped.” Implying that he slipped and slid on the floor and “did another dance,” Willie said that his Phil “simply said, ‘Will, you got moves I didn’t know you had.'” He added, “Not sure why I was always dancing in front of Phil. Maybe I figured it was the last thing he would think I would do, so I just did it.”
Next, Willie shared about how his father taught him “many things in life and most without ever saying a word,” going into detail about how Phil taught him “the value of sharing my faith with others.” He added, “He was the Real Deal, the same on Sundays as Fridays. Most of our conversations were not about hunting or business, but about sharing the Gospel.”
Moving on, Willie said that his father’s last words to him as he “leaned down over his weakened body” were “‘You’re my brother.” The younger Robertson added, “It made total sense to me. He always told me we were coworkers in the Kingdom of God. Maybe that’s why I always just called him Phil. Not sure if he’s up in Heaven now doing his own dance moves for our father.”
Concluding his post, Willie addressed Phil directly, saying, “I love you and already miss you.” He added, “Thank you for raising me the right way and teaching me the most important lesson to prepare me for the day you passed on.” Willie went on to say that he could not imagine dealing with loss “without the Lord,” and added, “We may be wrong about all this…but I doubt it!” He concluded, “Sleep well Dad, can’t wait to see you.”
On the same day, Willie’s daughter, Sadie Robertson Huff, also shared a heartfelt tribute to Phil on Instagram, quoting 2 Corinthians 5:17: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come,” and adding, “As I was sitting with Papaw Phil today, I thought about this verse… he has already experienced this on earth — going from dead to alive by the power of Christ!”
Continuing, Sadie wrote, “It was his testimony that changed his life, our families (sic) life, and thousands of others,” citing her grandfather’s bold faith as an inspiration to everyone whose life he touched. She added, “Now he is experiencing it in the fullness. Fully alive in Christ. The new has come.”
Featured image credit: Willie Robertson (@realwilliebosshog via Instagram)