Robert Downey Jr.
Encyclopedia
Robert John Downey, Jr. (born April 4, 1965) is an American actor. Downey made his screen debut in 1970 at the age of five when he appeared in his father's film Pound
, and has worked consistently in film and television ever since. During the 1980s he had roles in a series of coming of age
films associated with the Brat Pack. His role in Less Than Zero
(1987) served as the first time Downey's acting would be acknowledged by critics. After Zero, Downey started landing roles in bigger films such as Air America
(1990), Soapdish
(1991) and Natural Born Killers
(1994). He played Charlie Chaplin
in the 1992 film Chaplin for which he received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor
.
Between 1996 and 2001, Downey was frequently arrested on drug-related charges. After being released from the California Substance Abuse Treatment Facility and State Prison in 2000, Downey joined the cast of the hit television series Ally McBeal
playing the new love interest of Calista Flockhart
's title character. His performance was praised and received accolades, but his character was written out when Downey was fired after two drug arrests in late 2000 and early 2001. After one last stay in a court-ordered drug treatment program, Downey finally achieved lasting sobriety and his career began to take off again. He appeared in semi-independent films such as The Singing Detective
(2003), Kiss Kiss Bang Bang
(2005), and A Scanner Darkly
(2006). He also had supporting roles in the mainstream films Gothika
(2003) and Zodiac
(2007). In 2004, Downey released his debut studio album The Futurist
.
In 2007, Downey was cast as the title character
in the comic book adaptation Iron Man
. The film was a huge success; the opening weekend for Iron Man
is still in the top 20 openings of all time. He reprised the role of Tony Stark in the 2010 sequel, Iron Man 2
, and will again in 2012 in The Avengers and in the third film of the planned trilogy, Iron Man 3, due to open in 2013. Downey's other 2008 films included Charlie Bartlett
and the Ben Stiller
-directed Tropic Thunder
. In 2009, Downey starred as the titular lead character
in Guy Ritchie
's adaptation of Sherlock Holmes
, released Christmas 2009. Soon after, Downey won a Golden Globe
for Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy for that portrayal of the famous detective.
, and director of underground films, and his mother, Elsie (née Ford), is also an actress and appeared in Downey Sr.'s films. His father is of half Irish
and half Russian Jewish ancestry, and his mother is of German
and Scottish
descent. His father was born "Robert Elias" but changed his last name to "Downey" (after his stepfather James Downey) when he was a minor and wanted to enlist in the Army. He and his older sister, Allyson, grew up in Greenwich Village
.
As a child, Downey was "surrounded by drugs". His father, a drug addict, allowed Downey to use marijuana at age six, an incident which his father has said that he now regrets. Downey stated that drug use became an emotional bond between him and his father: "When my dad and I would do drugs together, it was like him trying to express his love for me in the only way he knew how." Eventually, Downey began spending every night abusing alcohol and "making a thousand phone calls in pursuit of drugs".
During his childhood Downey had minor roles in his father's projects. He made his acting debut at an age of five playing a sick puppy
in the absurdist comedy
Pound
(1970), and then at age seven he appeared in the surrealist
Greaser's Palace
(1972). At the age of 10, he was living in England and studied classical ballet
as part of a larger curriculum. He grew up in Greenwich Village
and attended the Stagedoor Manor
Performing Arts Training Center in upstate New York as a teenager. When his parents divorced in 1978, Downey moved to California with his father, but in 1982 he dropped out of Santa Monica High School
and moved back to New York to pursue an acting career full-time.
Downey began building upon theater roles, including the short-lived off-Broadway musical "American Passion" at the Joyce Theater in 1983, produced by Norman Lear. In 1985, at age 20, Downey joined the cast of the weekly television comedy show Saturday Night Live
(SNL), but was fired in 1986 following a cast overhaul that was done in order to save the show from cancellation due to low Nielsen ratings and critics panning the show for its mediocre cast at the time. In 1985, Downey had his breakthrough when he played James Spader
's sidekick
in Tuff Turf
and then a bully in John Hughes' Weird Science
. He was considered for the role of Duckie in John Hughes' film Pretty in Pink
(1986), but his first lead role would be with Molly Ringwald
in The Pick-up Artist
(1987). Because of these and other coming-of-age
films Downey did during the 1980s, he is sometimes named as a member of the Brat Pack.
In 1987 Downey played Julian Wells, a drug-addicted rich boy whose life rapidly spirals out of his control, in the film version of the Bret Easton Ellis
novel Less Than Zero
. His performance, described by Janet Maslin
in The New York Times as "desperately moving", was widely praised, though Downey has said that for him "the role was like the ghost of Christmas Future
" since his drug habit resulted in his becoming an "exaggeration of the character" in real life. Zero drove Downey into films with bigger budgets and names, such as Chances Are
(1989) with Cybill Shepherd
and Ryan O'Neal
, Air America
(1990) with Mel Gibson
, and Soapdish
(1991) with Sally Field
, Kevin Kline
and Whoopi Goldberg
.
In 1992, he starred as Charlie Chaplin
in Chaplin, a role for which he prepared extensively, learning how to play the violin and tennis left-handed. He even had a personal coach in order to imitate Chaplin's posture and way of carrying himself. The role garnered Downey an Academy Award
nomination for Best Actor
at the Academy Awards 65th ceremony
, losing to Al Pacino
in Scent of a Woman
. His other films in the 1990s included Heart and Souls
, Only You
, Natural Born Killers
, Restoration, Two Girls and a Guy
, Black and White
, Short Cuts
, Richard III
, and The Last Party
, a documentary written by Downey.
From 1996 through 2001, Downey was arrested numerous times on drug-related charges including cocaine
, heroin and marijuana and went several times through drug treatment programs unsuccessfully, explaining in 1999 to a judge: "It's like I've got a shotgun in my mouth with my finger on the trigger, and I like the taste of the gun metal." He explained his relapses by claiming to have been addicted to drugs since the age of eight, due to the fact that his father, also an addict, had been giving them to him.
In April 1996, Downey was arrested for possession of heroin, cocaine and an unloaded .357-caliber Magnum
handgun while he was speeding down Sunset Boulevard
. A month later, while on parole, he trespassed into a neighbor's home while under the influence of a controlled substance and fell asleep in one of the beds. He was sentenced to three years of probation and required to undergo mandatory drug testing. In 1997, he missed one of the court-ordered drug tests and had to spend four months in the Los Angeles County jail.
After Downey missed another required drug test in 1999, he was arrested once more. Despite Downey's lawyer, John Stewart Holden, assembling for his client's 1999 defense the same team of lawyers that successfully defended O. J. Simpson
during his criminal trial for murder
, Downey was sentenced to a three-year prison term at the California Substance Abuse Treatment Facility and State Prison in Corcoran, California (a.k.a. "Corcoran II"). At the time of the 1999 arrest, all of Downey's film projects had wrapped and were close to release, with the exception of In Dreams
, which he was allowed to complete filming. He had also been hired for voicing "The Devil" on the NBC
animated television series God, the Devil and Bob
, but was fired when he failed to show up for rehearsals.
After spending nearly a year in California Substance Abuse Treatment Facility and State Prison in Corcoran, California
, Downey, on condition of posting $5,000 bail, was unexpectedly freed when a judge ruled that his collective time in incarceration facilities (spawned from the initial 1996 arrests) had qualified him for early release. A week after his 2000 release, Downey joined the cast of the hit television series Ally McBeal
, playing the new love interest of Calista Flockhart
's title character. His performance was praised and the following year he was nominated for an Emmy Award
in the Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series
category and won a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor in a mini-series or television film
. He also appeared as a writer and singer on Vonda Shepard
's Ally McBeal: For Once in My Life album, and he sang with Sting a duet of "Every Breath You Take
" in an episode of the series. Despite the apparent success, Downey claims that his performance on the series was overrated and that, "It was my lowest point in terms of addictions. At that stage, I didn't give a fuck whether I ever acted again." In January 2001, Downey was scheduled to play the role of Hamlet
in a Los Angeles stage production directed by Mel Gibson
.
Before the end of his first season on Ally McBeal, over the Thanksgiving
2000 holiday, Downey was arrested when his room at Merv Griffin
's Hotel and Givenchy Spa in Palm Springs, California
was searched by the police, who were responding to an anonymous 911 call. Downey was under the influence of a controlled substance and in possession of cocaine and Valium. Despite the fact that, if convicted, he could face a prison sentence of up to four years and eight months, he signed on to appear in at least eight more Ally McBeal episodes.
In April 2001, while he was on parole, a Los Angeles police officer found him wandering barefoot in Culver City, in southwest Los Angeles. He was arrested for suspicion of being under the influence of drugs, but was released a few hours later, even though tests showed he had cocaine in his system. After this last arrest, producer David E. Kelley
and other Ally McBeal executives ordered last-minute re-writes and re-shoots and dismissed Downey from the show, despite the fact that Downey's character had resuscitated Ally McBeals ratings. The Culver City arrest also cost him a role in the high-profile film America's Sweethearts
, and the subsequent incarceration forced Mel Gibson to shut down his planned stage production of Hamlet as well. In July 2001, Downey pleaded no contest
to the Palm Springs charges, avoiding jail time. Instead, he was sent into drug rehabilitation and put on a three-year probation, benefiting from the California Proposition 36
, which had been passed the year before with the aim of helping non-violent drug offenders overcome their addictions instead of sending them to jail.
The book Conversations with Woody Allen reports that director Woody Allen
wanted to cast Downey and Winona Ryder
in his film Melinda and Melinda
in 2005, but was unable to do so because he could not get insurance on them, stating, "We couldn't get bonded. The completion bonding companies would not bond the picture unless we could insure them. We were heartbroken because I had worked with Winona before [on Celebrity
] and thought she was perfect for this and wanted to work with her again. And I had always wanted to work with Bob Downey and always thought he was a huge talent."
In a 2000-12-18 article for People Magazine entitled "Bad to Worse", Downey's stepmother Rosemary told author Alex Tresnlowski that Downey had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder
"a few years ago" and added that his bipolar disorder was "the reason he has a hard time staying sober. What hasn't been tried is medication and intensive psychotherapy." In the same article, Dr. Manijeh Nikakhtar, a Los Angeles psychiatrist and co-author of Addiction or Self-Medication: The Truth (ISBN 978-1883819576), says she received a letter from Downey in 1999, during his time at Corcoran II, asking for advice on his condition. She discovered that "no one had done a complete [psychiatric] evaluation [on him]...I asked him flat out if he thought he was bipolar, and he said, 'Oh yeah. There are times I spend a lot of money and I'm hyperactive, and there are other times I'm down.'" In an article for the March 2007 issue of Esquire Magazine, Downey told author Scott Raab that he wanted to address "this whole thing about the bipolar" after receiving a phone call from "the Bipolar Association" asking him about being bipolar. When Downey denied he had ever said he was bipolar, the caller quoted the People article, to which Downey replied, "'No! Dr. Malibusian said [I said I was bipolar]...', and they go, 'Well, it's been written, so we're going to quote it.'" Downey flatly denied being "depressed or manic" and that previous attempts to diagnose him with any kind of psychiatric or mood disorder have always been skewed because "the guy I was seeing didn't know I was smokin' crack in his bathroom. You can't make a diagnosis until somebody's sober."
in November 2004 that "when someone says, 'I really wonder if maybe I should go to rehab?' Well, uh, you're a wreck, you just lost your job, and your wife left you. Uh, you might want to give it a shot." He added that after his last arrest in April 2001, when he knew he would likely be facing another stint in prison or another form of incarceration such as court-ordered rehab, "I finally said, 'You know what? I don't think I can continue doing this.' And I reached out for help, and I ran with it.... You can reach out for help in kind of a half-assed way and you'll get it and you won't take advantage of it. It's not that difficult to overcome these seemingly ghastly problems...what's hard is to decide to actually do it."
Downey got his first post-rehab acting job in August 2001, lip-syncing in the video for the Elton John
's single "I Want Love
". Video director Sam Taylor-Wood
shot 16 takes of the video and used the last one because, according to John, Downey looked completely relaxed, and, "The way he underplays it is fantastic."
Downey was able to return to the big screen only after Mel Gibson
, who had been a close friend to Downey since both had co-starred in Air America, paid Downey's insurance bond for the 2003 film The Singing Detective
. Gibson's gamble paved the way for Downey's comeback and Downey returned to mainstream films in the mid 2000s with Gothika
, for which producer Joel Silver
withheld 40 percent of his salary until after production wrapped as insurance against his addictive behavior. Similar clauses have become standard in his contracts since then.
After Gothika, Downey was cast in a number of leading and supporting roles, including well-received work in a number of semi-independent films: A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints
, Good Night, and Good Luck, A Scanner Darkly
, and Steven Shainberg
's fictional biopic of Diane Arbus
, Fur
, where Downey's character represented the two biggest influences on Arbus' professional life, Lisette Model
and Marvin Israel
. Downey also received great notice for his roles in more mainstream fare such as Kiss Kiss Bang Bang
, Disney's poorly received The Shaggy Dog
, and David Fincher's 2007 take on one of the most famous unsolved serial killing cases ever, Zodiac
.
On November 23, 2004, Downey released his debut musical album, The Futurist
, on Sony Classical, for which he designed the cover art and designed the track listing label on the CD with his son Indio. The album received mixed reviews, but Downey stated in 2006 that he probably will not do another album, as he felt that the energy he put into doing the album was not compensated.
In 2006, Downey returned to his television roots when he guest-starred on Family Guy
in the episode "The Fat Guy Strangler
". Downey had previously telephoned the show's production staff and asked if he could produce or assist in an episode creation, as his son is a fan of the show. The producers of the show accepted the offer and created the character of Patrick Pewterschmidt, Lois Griffin
's long lost, mentally disturbed brother, for Downey.
Downey signed on with publishers HarperCollins
to write a memoir, which in 2006 was already being billed as a "candid look at the highs and lows of his life and career". In 2008, however, Downey returned his advance to the publishers and cancelled the book without further comment.
. That changed in the summer of 2008 when Downey starred in two critically and commercially successful films, Iron Man
and Tropic Thunder
. In the article Ben Stiller wrote for Downey's entry in the 2008 edition of The Time 100
, he offered an observation on Downey's commercially successful summer at the box office:
in the film Iron Man
, with director Jon Favreau
explaining the choice by stating: "Downey, Jr., wasn't the most obvious choice but he understood what makes the character tick. He found a lot of his own life experience in 'Tony Stark'." Favreau insisted in having Downey as he repeatedly claimed that Downey would be to Iron Man what Johnny Depp
is to the Pirates of the Caribbean series
, a lead actor that could both elevate the quality of the film and increase the public's interest in it. For the role Downey had to gain more than 20 pounds of muscle in five months to look like he "had the power to forge iron."
Iron Man
was globally released between April 30 and May 3, 2008, grossing over $300 million in the United States and Canada and receiving rave reviews which cite Downey's performance as a highlight of the film. As a result, both Downey and Favreau stated their interest in making Iron Man a trilogy. By October 2008, Downey had agreed to appear as Iron Man in two Iron Man sequels and the future film The Avengers, named after the superhero team that Stark joins. He also made a small appearance as Iron Man's alter ego Tony Stark in the 2008 film The Incredible Hulk
, as a part of Marvel Studios
' attempt to depict the same Marvel Universe
on film by providing continuity among the movies.
and Jack Black
in another 2008 summer film, the Stiller-directed Tropic Thunder
. Each man plays a Hollywood archetype—self-absorbed multi-Oscar winning Aussie method actor Kirk Lazarus (Downey), aging action hero desperately looking to reinvent himself as a serious actor (Stiller), and overweight heroin-addicted self-destructive comic best known for portraying multiple characters in a franchise of comedies about a family that farts in every film (Black)—as they star in an extremely expensive Vietnam-era film called Tropic Thunder. Lazarus undergoes a "controversial skin pigmentation procedure" in order to take on the role of African-American platoon sergeant Lincoln Osiris, which required Downey to wear dark makeup and a wig. Both Stiller and Downey feared Downey's portrayal of the character could become controversial:
When asked by Harry Smith on CBS's The Early Show who his model was for Lazarus, Downey laughed before responding, "Sadly, my sorry-ass self."
Released in the United States on August 13, 2008, Tropic Thunder received good reviews with 83% of reviews positive and an average normalized score of 71, according to the review aggregator websites Rotten Tomatoes
and Metacritic
, respectively. It earned US$26 million in its North American opening weekend and retained the number one position for its first three weekends of release. The film grossed $180 million in theaters before its release on home video on November 18, 2008. Downey was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal as Lazarus.
; the film was pushed out from a November 2008 release by Paramount Pictures
due to the studio's tight end-of-year release schedule. Critics who had seen the film in 2008 were mentioning it as a possible Academy Award candidate. Downey still picked up an Academy Award nomination for the 2008 release year for his role in Tropic Thunder, but did not garner similar recognition for The Soloist after its delayed release.
The first role Downey accepted after Iron Man was the title character
in Guy Ritchie's Sherlock Holmes
. Warner Bros.
released on December 25, 2009. The film set several box office records in the United States for a Christmas Day release, beating the previous record holder, 2008's Marley & Me
, by nearly $10M, and finished second only to Avatar in a record-setting Christmas weekend release at the films. Sherlock Holmes ended up being the 8th highest grossing film of 2009. When Downey won the Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Motion Picture Musical or Comedy from the Hollywood Foreign Press Association for his role as Sherlock Holmes, he noted in his acceptance speech that he had prepared no remarks because "my wife (Sherlock Holmes producer Susan Downey
) told me at 10:00 this morning that Matt Damon
(nominated for his role in The Informant!) was going to win." In 2010, Robert Downey, Jr. signed on to reprise his role as Sherlock Holmes in Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows
(due for release Christmas 2011).
Downey has signed on to reprise his role as Tony Stark in The Avengers (to be released in 2012) and Iron Man 3 (to be released in 2013).
, Two Girls and a Guy
, Friends and Lovers, The Singing Detective
and Kiss Kiss Bang Bang
. He released a CD in 2004 called The Futurist
, and while promoting his film Tropic Thunder
, he and his co-stars Ben Stiller
and Jack Black
were back up singers "The Pips" to Gladys Knight
singing "Midnight Train to Georgia
".
script, Yucatan, which is a heist film.
after meeting her on the set of Firstborn
. They separated in 1991 because of his drug addiction, according to Downey. He married actress/singer Deborah Falconer on May 29, 1992, after a 42-day courtship, and had a son with her, Indio Falconer Downey, born on September 7, 1993 in Los Angeles County, California
. The strain on their marriage from Downey's repeated trips to rehab and jail finally reached a breaking point; in 2001, in the midst of Downey's last arrest and sentencing to an extended stay in rehab, Falconer left Downey and took Indio with her. Downey and Falconer finalized their divorce on April 26, 2004. Downey now sees his son frequently after settling custody arrangements with Falconer.
In 2003, on the set of Gothika, Downey met producer Susan Levin
, an Executive Vice President of Production at Joel Silver
's film company, Silver Pictures
. Downey and Susan quietly struck up a romance during production, though Susan turned down his romantic advances twice. Despite Susan's worries that the romance would not last after the completion of shooting because "he's an actor; I have a real job", the couple's relationship continued after production wrapped on Gothika, and Downey proposed to Susan on the night before her thirtieth birthday. The couple were married on August 27, 2005, in a Jewish ceremony at Amagansett, New York
. He credits his wife with helping him kick his drug and alcohol habits."There's no understanding for me of the bigger picture in real time in a hands-on way without her. Because it was the perfect, perfect, perfect matching of personalities and gifts." One of his biceps reads "Suzie Q" in tribute to her. The couple are expecting their first child in February 2012.
Downey says he has been drug-free since July 2003, thanks to his family, therapy, meditation
, twelve-step recovery programs
, yoga
and the practice of Wing Chun
Kung Fu. He has described his religious beliefs as "Jewish-Buddhist" although he has been interested in the past in Christianity and the Hare Krishna
ideology. In a panel discussion, Rachel McAdams
, who co-starred with Downey in Sherlock Holmes
, called him a "superhero" for his "committed" work ethic. On the same panel, Downey described how he worked long hours and many weekends to ensure the accuracy of his portrayal of Holmes so as to help make the film a success.
Downey has been a close friend of Mel Gibson
since they starred in Air America. Downey defended Gibson during the controversy surrounding The Passion of the Christ
, and said "nobody's perfect" in reference to Gibson's DUI. Said Downey of Gibson:
Downey has indicated that his time in prison changed his political point of view somewhat, saying: "I have a really interesting political point of view, and it's not always something I say too loud at dinner tables here, but you can't go from a $2,000-a-night suite at La Mirage to a penitentiary and really understand it and come out a liberal. You can't. I wouldn't wish that experience on anyone else, but it was very, very, very educational for me and has informed my proclivities and politics ever since."
Pound (film)
Pound is a 1970 film directed and written by Robert Downey, Sr., it was based on The Comeuppance, an off-off broadway play written by Downey in 1961. It is about several dogs at a pound, the dogs are played by human actors. The film is notable as being the screen debut of Robert Downey, Jr., the...
, and has worked consistently in film and television ever since. During the 1980s he had roles in a series of coming of age
Coming-of-age film
Coming-of-age film is a film genre which focuses on the psychological and moral growth of the protagonist from youth to adulthood. Personal growth and change is an important characteristic of this genre, which relies on dialogue and emotional responses, rather than action. The main character is...
films associated with the Brat Pack. His role in Less Than Zero
Less Than Zero (film)
Less Than Zero is a 1987 American drama film loosely based on Bret Easton Ellis' novel of the same name. The film stars Andrew McCarthy as Clay, a college freshman returning home for Christmas to spend time with his ex-girlfriend Blair and his friend Julian , who is also a drug addict...
(1987) served as the first time Downey's acting would be acknowledged by critics. After Zero, Downey started landing roles in bigger films such as Air America
Air America (film)
Air America is a 1990 American action comedy film directed by Roger Spottiswoode, starring Mel Gibson and Robert Downey Jr. as Air America pilots, during the Vietnam War, flying missions in Laos...
(1990), Soapdish
Soapdish
Soapdish is a 1991 comedy film which tells a backstage story of the cast and crew of a popular fictional television soap opera. It stars Sally Field as an aging soap star, joined by Kevin Kline, Robert Downey, Jr., Elisabeth Shue, Whoopi Goldberg, Teri Hatcher, Cathy Moriarty, Garry Marshall, Kathy...
(1991) and Natural Born Killers
Natural Born Killers
Natural Born Killers is a 1994 crime/black comedy film directed by Oliver Stone about two victims of traumatic childhoods who became lovers and psychopathic serial killers, and are irresponsibly glorified by the mass media...
(1994). He played Charlie Chaplin
Charlie Chaplin
Sir Charles Spencer "Charlie" Chaplin, KBE was an English comic actor, film director and composer best known for his work during the silent film era. He became the most famous film star in the world before the end of World War I...
in the 1992 film Chaplin for which he received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor
Academy Award for Best Actor
Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry...
.
Between 1996 and 2001, Downey was frequently arrested on drug-related charges. After being released from the California Substance Abuse Treatment Facility and State Prison in 2000, Downey joined the cast of the hit television series Ally McBeal
Ally McBeal
Ally McBeal is an American legal comedy-drama series which aired on the Fox network from 1997 to 2002. The series was created by David E. Kelley, who also served as the executive producer, along with Bill D'Elia...
playing the new love interest of Calista Flockhart
Calista Flockhart
Calista Kay Flockhart is an American actress who is primarily recognized for her work in television. She is best known for playing the title character in the Fox comedy-drama series Ally McBeal for which she won a Golden Globe Award...
's title character. His performance was praised and received accolades, but his character was written out when Downey was fired after two drug arrests in late 2000 and early 2001. After one last stay in a court-ordered drug treatment program, Downey finally achieved lasting sobriety and his career began to take off again. He appeared in semi-independent films such as The Singing Detective
The Singing Detective (film)
The Singing Detective is a 2003 film based on the BBC serial The Singing Detective, a work by Dennis Potter. It stars Robert Downey, Jr...
(2003), Kiss Kiss Bang Bang
Kiss Kiss Bang Bang
Kiss Kiss Bang Bang is a 2005 crime/dark comedy film, which engages many conventions of the classic film noir genre in a tongue-in-cheek fashion. It is based, in part, on the novel Bodies Are Where You Find Them by Brett Halliday. The cast includes Robert Downey, Jr., Val Kilmer, Michelle Monaghan...
(2005), and A Scanner Darkly
A Scanner Darkly (film)
A Scanner Darkly is a 2006 science fiction thriller directed by Richard Linklater based on the novel of the same name by Philip K. Dick. The film tells the story of identity and deception in a near-future dystopia constantly under intrusive high-technology police surveillance in the midst of a drug...
(2006). He also had supporting roles in the mainstream films Gothika
Gothika
-Box office:Gothika was released on November 21, 2003 in North America, grossing $19,288,438 in the opening weekend and ranking at #2, behind The Cat in the Hat. It went on to gross $59,694,580 in the domestic market and $81,896,744 from foreign markets for a worldwide total of $141,591,324...
(2003) and Zodiac
Zodiac (film)
Zodiac is a 2007 American mystery-thriller film directed by David Fincher and based on Robert Graysmith's non-fiction book of the same name. The Paramount Pictures and Warner Bros...
(2007). In 2004, Downey released his debut studio album The Futurist
The Futurist (Robert Downey Jr. album)
-Personnel:*Robert Downey, Jr. — vocals, keyboards*Mark Hudson — acoustic guitar, electric guitar, percussion, background vocals*Cameron Stone — cello*Jeff Bunnell — fluglehorn*Jim Cox and Tom Canning — Hammond B-3 organ*Armand Sabal-Lecco — bass...
.
In 2007, Downey was cast as the title character
Iron Man
Iron Man is a fictional character, a superhero in the . The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee, developed by scripter Larry Lieber, and designed by artists Don Heck and Jack Kirby, first appearing in Tales of Suspense #39 .A billionaire playboy, industrialist and ingenious engineer,...
in the comic book adaptation Iron Man
Iron Man (film)
Iron Man is a 2008 American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name. Directed by Jon Favreau, the film stars Robert Downey, Jr. as Tony Stark, an industrialist and master engineer who builds a powered exoskeleton and becomes the technologically advanced superhero, Iron...
. The film was a huge success; the opening weekend for Iron Man
Iron Man (film)
Iron Man is a 2008 American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name. Directed by Jon Favreau, the film stars Robert Downey, Jr. as Tony Stark, an industrialist and master engineer who builds a powered exoskeleton and becomes the technologically advanced superhero, Iron...
is still in the top 20 openings of all time. He reprised the role of Tony Stark in the 2010 sequel, Iron Man 2
Iron Man 2
Iron Man 2 is a 2010 American superhero film featuring the Marvel Comics character Iron Man, produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Paramount Pictures. It is the sequel to 2008's Iron Man, the second film in a planned trilogy and is a part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Directed by Jon...
, and will again in 2012 in The Avengers and in the third film of the planned trilogy, Iron Man 3, due to open in 2013. Downey's other 2008 films included Charlie Bartlett
Charlie Bartlett
Charlie Bartlett is a 2008 comedy-drama film directed by Jon Poll. The screenplay by Gustin Nash focuses on a teenager who begins to dispense therapeutic advice and prescription drugs to the student body at his new high school in order to become popular....
and the Ben Stiller
Ben Stiller
Benjamin Edward "Ben" Stiller is an American comedian, actor, writer, film director, and producer. He is the son of veteran comedians and actors Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara....
-directed Tropic Thunder
Tropic Thunder
Tropic Thunder is a 2008 American action satire comedy film written, produced, and directed by Ben Stiller, and starring Stiller, Robert Downey, Jr., and Jack Black. The main plot revolves around a group of prima donna actors who are making a Vietnam War film...
. In 2009, Downey starred as the titular lead character
Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes is a fictional detective created by Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The fantastic London-based "consulting detective", Holmes is famous for his astute logical reasoning, his ability to take almost any disguise, and his use of forensic science skills to solve...
in Guy Ritchie
Guy Ritchie
Guy Stuart Ritchie is an English screenwriter and film maker who directed Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, Snatch, Revolver, RocknRolla and Sherlock Holmes.-Early life:...
's adaptation of Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes (2009 film)
Sherlock Holmes is a 2009 action-mystery film based on the character of the same name created by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The film was directed by Guy Ritchie and produced by Joel Silver, Lionel Wigram, Susan Downey and Dan Lin. The screenplay by Michael Robert Johnson, Anthony Peckham and Simon...
, released Christmas 2009. Soon after, Downey won a Golden Globe
Golden Globe Award
The Golden Globe Award is an accolade bestowed by the 93 members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association recognizing excellence in film and television, both domestic and foreign...
for Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy for that portrayal of the famous detective.
Early life and family
Downey was born in Manhattan, New York, the younger of two children. His father, Robert Downey, Sr., is an actor, writer, producer, cinematographerCinematographer
A cinematographer is one photographing with a motion picture camera . The title is generally equivalent to director of photography , used to designate a chief over the camera and lighting crews working on a film, responsible for achieving artistic and technical decisions related to the image...
, and director of underground films, and his mother, Elsie (née Ford), is also an actress and appeared in Downey Sr.'s films. His father is of half Irish
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
and half Russian Jewish ancestry, and his mother is of German
Germans
The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....
and Scottish
Scottish people
The Scottish people , or Scots, are a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland. Historically they emerged from an amalgamation of the Picts and Gaels, incorporating neighbouring Britons to the south as well as invading Germanic peoples such as the Anglo-Saxons and the Norse.In modern use,...
descent. His father was born "Robert Elias" but changed his last name to "Downey" (after his stepfather James Downey) when he was a minor and wanted to enlist in the Army. He and his older sister, Allyson, grew up in Greenwich Village
Greenwich Village
Greenwich Village, , , , .in New York often simply called "the Village", is a largely residential neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan in New York City. A large majority of the district is home to upper middle class families...
.
As a child, Downey was "surrounded by drugs". His father, a drug addict, allowed Downey to use marijuana at age six, an incident which his father has said that he now regrets. Downey stated that drug use became an emotional bond between him and his father: "When my dad and I would do drugs together, it was like him trying to express his love for me in the only way he knew how." Eventually, Downey began spending every night abusing alcohol and "making a thousand phone calls in pursuit of drugs".
During his childhood Downey had minor roles in his father's projects. He made his acting debut at an age of five playing a sick puppy
Puppy
A puppy is a juvenile dog. Some puppies may weigh , while larger ones can weigh up to . All healthy puppies grow quickly after birth. A puppy's coat color may change as the puppy grows older, as is commonly seen in breeds such as the Yorkshire Terrier...
in the absurdist comedy
Surreal humour
Surreal humour is a form of humour based on violations of causal reasoning with events and behaviours that are logically incongruent. Constructions of surreal humour involve bizarre juxtapositions, non-sequiturs, irrational situations, and/or expressions of nonsense.The humour arises from a...
Pound
Pound (film)
Pound is a 1970 film directed and written by Robert Downey, Sr., it was based on The Comeuppance, an off-off broadway play written by Downey in 1961. It is about several dogs at a pound, the dogs are played by human actors. The film is notable as being the screen debut of Robert Downey, Jr., the...
(1970), and then at age seven he appeared in the surrealist
Surrealism
Surrealism is a cultural movement that began in the early 1920s, and is best known for the visual artworks and writings of the group members....
Greaser's Palace
Greaser's Palace
Greaser's Palace is a 1972 American cult film directed by underground filmmaker Robert Downey, Sr. A parable based on the life of Christ, it is full of references about the destruction of the world.-Plot:...
(1972). At the age of 10, he was living in England and studied classical ballet
Classical ballet
Classical Ballet is the most formal of the ballet styles, it adheres to traditional ballet technique. There are variations relating to area of origin, such as Russian ballet, French ballet, British ballet and Italian ballet...
as part of a larger curriculum. He grew up in Greenwich Village
Greenwich Village
Greenwich Village, , , , .in New York often simply called "the Village", is a largely residential neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan in New York City. A large majority of the district is home to upper middle class families...
and attended the Stagedoor Manor
Stagedoor Manor
Stagedoor Manor is a performing arts summer camp located in Loch Sheldrake, New York. Over the past 36 years, it has trained thousands of young actors, many of whom have gone on to success in film, television, and theatre....
Performing Arts Training Center in upstate New York as a teenager. When his parents divorced in 1978, Downey moved to California with his father, but in 1982 he dropped out of Santa Monica High School
Santa Monica High School
Santa Monica High School, informally known as SAMOHI, is located in Santa Monica, California. Founded in 1884, it is one of the oldest high schools in the state....
and moved back to New York to pursue an acting career full-time.
Beginnings and critical acclaim
Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...
(SNL), but was fired in 1986 following a cast overhaul that was done in order to save the show from cancellation due to low Nielsen ratings and critics panning the show for its mediocre cast at the time. In 1985, Downey had his breakthrough when he played James Spader
James Spader
James Todd Spader is an American actor best known for his eccentric roles in movies such as Pretty in Pink, Less Than Zero, Sex, Lies, and Videotape, Crash, Stargate, and Secretary...
's sidekick
Sidekick
A sidekick is a close companion who is generally regarded as subordinate to the one he accompanies. Some well-known fictional sidekicks are Don Quixote's Sancho Panza, Sherlock Holmes' Doctor Watson, The Lone Ranger's Tonto, The Green Hornet's Kato and Batman's Robin.-Origins:The origin of the...
in Tuff Turf
Tuff Turf
Tuff Turf is a 1985 American drama film starring James Spader and Kim Richards. The film was released in the United States on January 11, 1985.-Plot:...
and then a bully in John Hughes' Weird Science
Weird Science (film)
Weird Science is a 1985 American teen comedy film written and directed by John Hughes and starring Anthony Michael Hall, Ilan Mitchell-Smith, and Kelly LeBrock...
. He was considered for the role of Duckie in John Hughes' film Pretty in Pink
Pretty in Pink
Pretty in Pink is a 1986 American teen romantic comedy-drama film about teenage love and social cliques in 1980s American high schools. It is one of a group of John Hughes films starring Molly Ringwald, and is commonly identified as a "Brat Pack" film...
(1986), but his first lead role would be with Molly Ringwald
Molly Ringwald
Molly Kathleen Ringwald is an American actress, singer and dancer. Having appeared in the John Hughes movies Sixteen Candles , The Breakfast Club , and Pretty in Pink , Ringwald has been frequently named the greatest teen star of all time...
in The Pick-up Artist
The Pick-up Artist (film)
The Pick-up Artist is a 1987 American film written and directed by James Toback. This romantic comedy starred Molly Ringwald and Robert Downey Jr. It was rated PG-13 by the MPAA.-Plot:...
(1987). Because of these and other coming-of-age
Coming-of-age film
Coming-of-age film is a film genre which focuses on the psychological and moral growth of the protagonist from youth to adulthood. Personal growth and change is an important characteristic of this genre, which relies on dialogue and emotional responses, rather than action. The main character is...
films Downey did during the 1980s, he is sometimes named as a member of the Brat Pack.
In 1987 Downey played Julian Wells, a drug-addicted rich boy whose life rapidly spirals out of his control, in the film version of the Bret Easton Ellis
Bret Easton Ellis
Bret Easton Ellis is an American novelist and short story writer. His works have been translated into 27 different languages. He was regarded as one of the so-called literary Brat Pack, which also included Tama Janowitz and Jay McInerney...
novel Less Than Zero
Less Than Zero (film)
Less Than Zero is a 1987 American drama film loosely based on Bret Easton Ellis' novel of the same name. The film stars Andrew McCarthy as Clay, a college freshman returning home for Christmas to spend time with his ex-girlfriend Blair and his friend Julian , who is also a drug addict...
. His performance, described by Janet Maslin
Janet Maslin
Janet Maslin is an American journalist, best known as a film and literary critic for The New York Times. She served as the Times film critic from 1977–1999.- Biography :...
in The New York Times as "desperately moving", was widely praised, though Downey has said that for him "the role was like the ghost of Christmas Future
Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come
The Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come, A.K.A., The Ghost of Christmas Future, is a fictional character in English novelist Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol. It is the ghost that haunts the miser Ebenezer Scrooge, in order to prompt him to adopt a more caring attitude in life and avoid the horrid...
" since his drug habit resulted in his becoming an "exaggeration of the character" in real life. Zero drove Downey into films with bigger budgets and names, such as Chances Are
Chances Are (film)
Chances Are is a 1989 romantic comedy film written by Perry & Randy Howze and directed by Emile Ardolino. Starring Cybill Shepherd, Robert Downey, Jr., Ryan O'Neal, and Mary Stuart Masterson. The original music score was composed by Maurice Jarre.-Plot:...
(1989) with Cybill Shepherd
Cybill Shepherd
Cybill Lynne Shepherd is an American actress, singer and former model. Her best known roles include starring as Jacy in The Last Picture Show, as Betsy in Taxi Driver, as Madeleine Spencer in Psych, as Maddie Hayes on Moonlighting, as Cybill Sheridan on Cybill, and as Phyllis Kroll on The L...
and Ryan O'Neal
Ryan O'Neal
Charles Patrick Ryan O'Neal , better known as Ryan O'Neal, is an American actor best known for his appearances in the ABC nighttime soap opera Peyton Place and for his roles in such films as Paper Moon , Stanley Kubrick's Barry Lyndon , A Bridge Too Far , and Love Story , for which he received...
, Air America
Air America (film)
Air America is a 1990 American action comedy film directed by Roger Spottiswoode, starring Mel Gibson and Robert Downey Jr. as Air America pilots, during the Vietnam War, flying missions in Laos...
(1990) with Mel Gibson
Mel Gibson
Mel Colm-Cille Gerard Gibson, AO is an American actor, film director, producer and screenwriter. Born in Peekskill, New York, Gibson moved with his parents to Sydney, Australia when he was 12 years old and later studied acting at the Australian National Institute of Dramatic Art.After appearing in...
, and Soapdish
Soapdish
Soapdish is a 1991 comedy film which tells a backstage story of the cast and crew of a popular fictional television soap opera. It stars Sally Field as an aging soap star, joined by Kevin Kline, Robert Downey, Jr., Elisabeth Shue, Whoopi Goldberg, Teri Hatcher, Cathy Moriarty, Garry Marshall, Kathy...
(1991) with Sally Field
Sally Field
Sally Margaret Field is an American actress, singer, producer, director, and screenwriter. In each decade of her career, she has been known for major roles in American TV/film culture, including: in the 1960s, for Gidget or Sister Bertrille on The Flying Nun ; in the 1970s, for Sybil , Smokey and...
, Kevin Kline
Kevin Kline
Kevin Delaney Kline is an American theatre, voice, film actor and comedian. He has won an Academy Award and two Tony Awards, and has been nominated for five Golden Globe Awards, two BAFTA Awards and an Emmy Award.- Early life :...
and Whoopi Goldberg
Whoopi Goldberg
Whoopi Goldberg is an American comedian, actress, singer-songwriter, political activist, author and talk show host.Goldberg made her film debut in The Color Purple playing Celie, a mistreated black woman in the Deep South. She received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress and won...
.
In 1992, he starred as Charlie Chaplin
Charlie Chaplin
Sir Charles Spencer "Charlie" Chaplin, KBE was an English comic actor, film director and composer best known for his work during the silent film era. He became the most famous film star in the world before the end of World War I...
in Chaplin, a role for which he prepared extensively, learning how to play the violin and tennis left-handed. He even had a personal coach in order to imitate Chaplin's posture and way of carrying himself. The role garnered Downey an Academy Award
Academy Awards
An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
nomination for Best Actor
Academy Award for Best Actor
Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry...
at the Academy Awards 65th ceremony
65th Academy Awards
The 65th Academy Awards were presented March 29, 1993 at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, Los Angeles. This was the fourth consecutive show hosted by Billy Crystal.Unforgiven won four Oscars out of nine nominations including Best Picture.-Awards:...
, losing to Al Pacino
Al Pacino
Alfredo James "Al" Pacino is an American film and stage actor and director. He is famous for playing mobsters, including Michael Corleone in The Godfather trilogy, Tony Montana in Scarface, Alphonse "Big Boy" Caprice in Dick Tracy and Carlito Brigante in Carlito's Way, though he has also appeared...
in Scent of a Woman
Scent of a Woman
This article is about the American film. For the Korean drama, see Scent of a Woman .Scent of a Woman is a 1992 drama film directed by Martin Brest that tells the story of a preparatory school student who takes a job as an assistant to an irascible, blind, medically retired Army officer...
. His other films in the 1990s included Heart and Souls
Heart and Souls
Heart and Souls is a 1993 fantasy/comedy film about the souls of four deceased people who are trapped on earth and can only be seen by a single living human being who is recruited to help them take care of their unfinished business...
, Only You
Only You (1994 film)
Only You is a 1994 romantic comedy film written by Diane Drake and directed and coproduced by Norman Jewison. It stars Marisa Tomei as a young woman who searches for a man whom she believes is her soulmate and Robert Downey Jr. as a young man she meets along the way...
, Natural Born Killers
Natural Born Killers
Natural Born Killers is a 1994 crime/black comedy film directed by Oliver Stone about two victims of traumatic childhoods who became lovers and psychopathic serial killers, and are irresponsibly glorified by the mass media...
, Restoration, Two Girls and a Guy
Two Girls and a Guy
Two Girls and a Guy is a film produced in 1997 by Edward R. Pressman and Chris Hanley. The director was James Toback, who also wrote the screenplay.-Plot:...
, Black and White
Black and White (1999 film)
Black and White is a 1999 American film directed by James Toback, starring Robert Downey, Jr., Gaby Hoffmann, Allan Houston, Jared Leto, Scott Caan, Claudia Schiffer, Brooke Shields and a number of rap musicians, namely members of the Wu-Tang Clan and Onyx .The...
, Short Cuts
Short Cuts
Short Cuts is a 1993 American drama film directed by Robert Altman. Filmed from a screenplay by Robert Altman and Frank Barhydt, it is inspired by nine short stories and a poem by Raymond Carver...
, Richard III
Richard III (1995 film)
Richard III is a 1995 drama film adapted from William Shakespeare's play of the same name, starring Ian McKellen, Annette Bening, Jim Broadbent, Robert Downey Jr., Nigel Hawthorne, Kristin Scott Thomas, Maggie Smith, John Wood and Dominic West....
, and The Last Party
The Last Party (film)
The Last Party is a documentary film co-written by and starring Robert Downey, Jr. Interviews and commentary cover moments of history during the 1992 presidential campaigns and investigate the issues of the day with Downey's particular brand of off-beat humor and satire...
, a documentary written by Downey.
Substance abuse and arrests
Cocaine
Cocaine is a crystalline tropane alkaloid that is obtained from the leaves of the coca plant. The name comes from "coca" in addition to the alkaloid suffix -ine, forming cocaine. It is a stimulant of the central nervous system, an appetite suppressant, and a topical anesthetic...
, heroin and marijuana and went several times through drug treatment programs unsuccessfully, explaining in 1999 to a judge: "It's like I've got a shotgun in my mouth with my finger on the trigger, and I like the taste of the gun metal." He explained his relapses by claiming to have been addicted to drugs since the age of eight, due to the fact that his father, also an addict, had been giving them to him.
In April 1996, Downey was arrested for possession of heroin, cocaine and an unloaded .357-caliber Magnum
.357 Magnum
The .357 S&W Magnum , or simply .357 Magnum, is a revolver cartridge created by Elmer Keith, Phillip B. Sharpe, Colonel D. B. Wesson of firearms manufacturer Smith & Wesson, and Winchester. It is based upon Smith & Wesson's earlier .38 Special cartridge. The .357 Magnum cartridge was introduced in...
handgun while he was speeding down Sunset Boulevard
Sunset Boulevard
Sunset Boulevard is a street in the western part of Los Angeles County, California, that stretches from Figueroa Street in downtown Los Angeles to the Pacific Coast Highway at the Pacific Ocean in the Pacific Palisades...
. A month later, while on parole, he trespassed into a neighbor's home while under the influence of a controlled substance and fell asleep in one of the beds. He was sentenced to three years of probation and required to undergo mandatory drug testing. In 1997, he missed one of the court-ordered drug tests and had to spend four months in the Los Angeles County jail.
After Downey missed another required drug test in 1999, he was arrested once more. Despite Downey's lawyer, John Stewart Holden, assembling for his client's 1999 defense the same team of lawyers that successfully defended O. J. Simpson
O. J. Simpson
Orenthal James "O. J." Simpson , nicknamed "The Juice", is a retired American collegiate and professional football player, football broadcaster, and actor...
during his criminal trial for murder
O. J. Simpson murder case
The O. J. Simpson murder case was a criminal trial held in Los Angeles County, California Superior Court from January 29 to October 3, 1995. Former American football star and actor O. J...
, Downey was sentenced to a three-year prison term at the California Substance Abuse Treatment Facility and State Prison in Corcoran, California (a.k.a. "Corcoran II"). At the time of the 1999 arrest, all of Downey's film projects had wrapped and were close to release, with the exception of In Dreams
In Dreams (film)
In Dreams is a 1999 psychological thriller film directed by Neil Jordan. It stars Annette Bening as a New England illustrator who begins experiencing visions of a missing child who turns out to be her own daughter; through her dreams, she begins having psychic connections to a serial killer ...
, which he was allowed to complete filming. He had also been hired for voicing "The Devil" on the NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
animated television series God, the Devil and Bob
God, the Devil and Bob
God, the Devil and Bob is an animated sitcom which premiered on NBC on March 9, 2000 and ended on March 28, 2000, leaving nine episodes unaired. It was created by Matthew Carlson. It is currently broadcast on the Philippine channel Maxxx. The entire series was released on Region 1 DVD in the...
, but was fired when he failed to show up for rehearsals.
After spending nearly a year in California Substance Abuse Treatment Facility and State Prison in Corcoran, California
Corcoran, California
Corcoran is a city in Kings County, California, United States. Corcoran is located south-southeast of Hanford, at an elevation of 207 feet . It is part of the Hanford–Corcoran, Metropolitan Statistical Area...
, Downey, on condition of posting $5,000 bail, was unexpectedly freed when a judge ruled that his collective time in incarceration facilities (spawned from the initial 1996 arrests) had qualified him for early release. A week after his 2000 release, Downey joined the cast of the hit television series Ally McBeal
Ally McBeal
Ally McBeal is an American legal comedy-drama series which aired on the Fox network from 1997 to 2002. The series was created by David E. Kelley, who also served as the executive producer, along with Bill D'Elia...
, playing the new love interest of Calista Flockhart
Calista Flockhart
Calista Kay Flockhart is an American actress who is primarily recognized for her work in television. She is best known for playing the title character in the Fox comedy-drama series Ally McBeal for which she won a Golden Globe Award...
's title character. His performance was praised and the following year he was nominated for an Emmy Award
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
in the Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor - Comedy Series
This is a list of the winners of the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series.-1950s:*1954: Art Carney – The Jackie Gleason Show as Ed Norton*1955: Art Carney – The Jackie Gleason Show as Ed Norton...
category and won a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor in a mini-series or television film
58th Golden Globe Awards
The 58th Golden Globe Awards, honoring the best in film and television for 2000, were held on January 21, 2001.-Best Actor - Drama:Tom Hanks - Cast Away*Javier Bardem - Before Night Falls*Russell Crowe - Gladiator...
. He also appeared as a writer and singer on Vonda Shepard
Vonda Shepard
Vonda Shepard is an American pop/rock singer. She appeared as a regular in the television show Ally McBeal from seasons 1-5 in which she played a resident performer at the bar where the show's characters drank after work. She plays piano, guitar, and bass.-Biography:Vonda Shepard was born in New...
's Ally McBeal: For Once in My Life album, and he sang with Sting a duet of "Every Breath You Take
Every Breath You Take
"Every Breath You Take" is a song by The Police on the band's 1983 album Synchronicity, written by Sting and Andy Summers . The single was one of the biggest hits of 1983, topping the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart for eight weeks and the UK Singles Chart for four weeks. It also topped the...
" in an episode of the series. Despite the apparent success, Downey claims that his performance on the series was overrated and that, "It was my lowest point in terms of addictions. At that stage, I didn't give a fuck whether I ever acted again." In January 2001, Downey was scheduled to play the role of Hamlet
Hamlet
The Tragical History of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, or more simply Hamlet, is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1599 and 1601...
in a Los Angeles stage production directed by Mel Gibson
Mel Gibson
Mel Colm-Cille Gerard Gibson, AO is an American actor, film director, producer and screenwriter. Born in Peekskill, New York, Gibson moved with his parents to Sydney, Australia when he was 12 years old and later studied acting at the Australian National Institute of Dramatic Art.After appearing in...
.
Before the end of his first season on Ally McBeal, over the Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving Day is a holiday celebrated primarily in the United States and Canada. Thanksgiving is celebrated each year on the second Monday of October in Canada and on the fourth Thursday of November in the United States. In Canada, Thanksgiving falls on the same day as Columbus Day in the...
2000 holiday, Downey was arrested when his room at Merv Griffin
Merv Griffin
Mervyn Edward "Merv" Griffin, Jr. was an American television host, musician, actor, and media mogul. He began his career as a radio and big band singer who went on to appear in movies and on Broadway. From 1965 to 1986 Griffin hosted his own talk show, The Merv Griffin Show on Group W Broadcasting...
's Hotel and Givenchy Spa in Palm Springs, California
Palm Springs, California
Palm Springs is a desert city in Riverside County, California, within the Coachella Valley. It is located approximately 37 miles east of San Bernardino, 111 miles east of Los Angeles and 136 miles northeast of San Diego...
was searched by the police, who were responding to an anonymous 911 call. Downey was under the influence of a controlled substance and in possession of cocaine and Valium. Despite the fact that, if convicted, he could face a prison sentence of up to four years and eight months, he signed on to appear in at least eight more Ally McBeal episodes.
In April 2001, while he was on parole, a Los Angeles police officer found him wandering barefoot in Culver City, in southwest Los Angeles. He was arrested for suspicion of being under the influence of drugs, but was released a few hours later, even though tests showed he had cocaine in his system. After this last arrest, producer David E. Kelley
David E. Kelley
David Edward Kelley is an American television writer and producer, known as the creator of Picket Fences, Chicago Hope, The Practice, Ally McBeal, Boston Public, Boston Legal and Harry's Law, as well as several films. Kelley is one of the only screenwriters to have had a show created by him run on...
and other Ally McBeal executives ordered last-minute re-writes and re-shoots and dismissed Downey from the show, despite the fact that Downey's character had resuscitated Ally McBeals ratings. The Culver City arrest also cost him a role in the high-profile film America's Sweethearts
America's Sweethearts
America's Sweethearts is a 2001 romantic comedy film, directed by Joe Roth, starring Julia Roberts, Billy Crystal, John Cusack, and Catherine Zeta-Jones. The film also stars Keri Lynn Pratt, Hank Azaria, Stanley Tucci, Seth Green, Alan Arkin, and Christopher Walken, and features a cameo appearance...
, and the subsequent incarceration forced Mel Gibson to shut down his planned stage production of Hamlet as well. In July 2001, Downey pleaded no contest
Nolo contendere
is a legal term that comes from the Latin for "I do not wish to contend." It is also referred to as a plea of no contest.In criminal trials, and in some common law jurisdictions, it is a plea where the defendant neither admits nor disputes a charge, serving as an alternative to a pleading of...
to the Palm Springs charges, avoiding jail time. Instead, he was sent into drug rehabilitation and put on a three-year probation, benefiting from the California Proposition 36
California Proposition 36 (2000)
California Proposition 36, the Substance Abuse and Crime Prevention Act of 2000, was an initiative statute that permanently changed state law to allow qualifying defendants convicted of non-violent drug possession offenses to receive a probationary sentence in lieu of incarceration...
, which had been passed the year before with the aim of helping non-violent drug offenders overcome their addictions instead of sending them to jail.
The book Conversations with Woody Allen reports that director Woody Allen
Woody Allen
Woody Allen is an American screenwriter, director, actor, comedian, jazz musician, author, and playwright. Allen's films draw heavily on literature, sexuality, philosophy, psychology, Jewish identity, and the history of cinema...
wanted to cast Downey and Winona Ryder
Winona Ryder
Winona Ryder is an American actress. She made her film debut in the 1986 film Lucas. Ryder's first significant role came in Tim Burton's Beetlejuice as a goth teenager, which won her critical and commercial recognition...
in his film Melinda and Melinda
Melinda and Melinda
Melinda and Melinda is a 2004 film written and directed by Woody Allen. It was premiered at the San Sebastian International Film Festival. The film is set in Manhattan and stars Radha Mitchell as the protagonist Melinda, in two storylines; one comic, one tragic...
in 2005, but was unable to do so because he could not get insurance on them, stating, "We couldn't get bonded. The completion bonding companies would not bond the picture unless we could insure them. We were heartbroken because I had worked with Winona before [on Celebrity
Celebrity (film)
Celebrity is a 1998 comedy-drama film written and directed by Woody Allen. The screenplay focuses on the divergent paths a couple takes following their divorce.-Plot:...
] and thought she was perfect for this and wanted to work with her again. And I had always wanted to work with Bob Downey and always thought he was a huge talent."
In a 2000-12-18 article for People Magazine entitled "Bad to Worse", Downey's stepmother Rosemary told author Alex Tresnlowski that Downey had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder
Bipolar disorder
Bipolar disorder or bipolar affective disorder, historically known as manic–depressive disorder, is a psychiatric diagnosis that describes a category of mood disorders defined by the presence of one or more episodes of abnormally elevated energy levels, cognition, and mood with or without one or...
"a few years ago" and added that his bipolar disorder was "the reason he has a hard time staying sober. What hasn't been tried is medication and intensive psychotherapy." In the same article, Dr. Manijeh Nikakhtar, a Los Angeles psychiatrist and co-author of Addiction or Self-Medication: The Truth (ISBN 978-1883819576), says she received a letter from Downey in 1999, during his time at Corcoran II, asking for advice on his condition. She discovered that "no one had done a complete [psychiatric] evaluation [on him]...I asked him flat out if he thought he was bipolar, and he said, 'Oh yeah. There are times I spend a lot of money and I'm hyperactive, and there are other times I'm down.'" In an article for the March 2007 issue of Esquire Magazine, Downey told author Scott Raab that he wanted to address "this whole thing about the bipolar" after receiving a phone call from "the Bipolar Association" asking him about being bipolar. When Downey denied he had ever said he was bipolar, the caller quoted the People article, to which Downey replied, "'No! Dr. Malibusian said [I said I was bipolar]...', and they go, 'Well, it's been written, so we're going to quote it.'" Downey flatly denied being "depressed or manic" and that previous attempts to diagnose him with any kind of psychiatric or mood disorder have always been skewed because "the guy I was seeing didn't know I was smokin' crack in his bathroom. You can't make a diagnosis until somebody's sober."
Career comeback
After five years of substance abuse, arrest, rehab, and relapse, Robert Downey, Jr. was finally ready to work toward a full recovery from drugs and a return to his career. In discussing his failed attempts to control his own addictive behavior in the past, Downey told Oprah WinfreyOprah Winfrey
Oprah Winfrey is an American media proprietor, talk show host, actress, producer and philanthropist. Winfrey is best known for her self-titled, multi-award-winning talk show, which has become the highest-rated program of its kind in history and was nationally syndicated from 1986 to 2011...
in November 2004 that "when someone says, 'I really wonder if maybe I should go to rehab?' Well, uh, you're a wreck, you just lost your job, and your wife left you. Uh, you might want to give it a shot." He added that after his last arrest in April 2001, when he knew he would likely be facing another stint in prison or another form of incarceration such as court-ordered rehab, "I finally said, 'You know what? I don't think I can continue doing this.' And I reached out for help, and I ran with it.... You can reach out for help in kind of a half-assed way and you'll get it and you won't take advantage of it. It's not that difficult to overcome these seemingly ghastly problems...what's hard is to decide to actually do it."
Downey got his first post-rehab acting job in August 2001, lip-syncing in the video for the Elton John
Elton John
Sir Elton Hercules John, CBE, Hon DMus is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, pianist and occasional actor...
's single "I Want Love
Songs from the West Coast
Songs from the West Coast is the twenty-seventh studio album by British singer/songwriter Elton John, released worldwide on 1 October 2001. Many critics have said that this album brought John back to his piano-based musical roots. He once again collaborated with long-time lyricist Bernie Taupin....
". Video director Sam Taylor-Wood
Sam Taylor-Wood
Samantha "Sam" Taylor-Wood OBE , born Samantha Taylor, is an English filmmaker, photographer, and visual artist. Her directorial feature film debut came in 2009 with Nowhere Boy, a film based on the childhood experiences of The Beatles songwriter and singer John Lennon...
shot 16 takes of the video and used the last one because, according to John, Downey looked completely relaxed, and, "The way he underplays it is fantastic."
Downey was able to return to the big screen only after Mel Gibson
Mel Gibson
Mel Colm-Cille Gerard Gibson, AO is an American actor, film director, producer and screenwriter. Born in Peekskill, New York, Gibson moved with his parents to Sydney, Australia when he was 12 years old and later studied acting at the Australian National Institute of Dramatic Art.After appearing in...
, who had been a close friend to Downey since both had co-starred in Air America, paid Downey's insurance bond for the 2003 film The Singing Detective
The Singing Detective (film)
The Singing Detective is a 2003 film based on the BBC serial The Singing Detective, a work by Dennis Potter. It stars Robert Downey, Jr...
. Gibson's gamble paved the way for Downey's comeback and Downey returned to mainstream films in the mid 2000s with Gothika
Gothika
-Box office:Gothika was released on November 21, 2003 in North America, grossing $19,288,438 in the opening weekend and ranking at #2, behind The Cat in the Hat. It went on to gross $59,694,580 in the domestic market and $81,896,744 from foreign markets for a worldwide total of $141,591,324...
, for which producer Joel Silver
Joel Silver
Joel Silver is an American Hollywood film producer, co-creator of the sport of Ultimate, co-founder of Dark Castle Entertainment and owner of Silver Pictures.-Life and career:...
withheld 40 percent of his salary until after production wrapped as insurance against his addictive behavior. Similar clauses have become standard in his contracts since then.
After Gothika, Downey was cast in a number of leading and supporting roles, including well-received work in a number of semi-independent films: A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints
A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints
A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints is a 2006 American drama film based on a 2001 memoir of the same name by author and musician Dito Montiel, which describes his youth in Astoria, New York during the 1980s....
, Good Night, and Good Luck, A Scanner Darkly
A Scanner Darkly (film)
A Scanner Darkly is a 2006 science fiction thriller directed by Richard Linklater based on the novel of the same name by Philip K. Dick. The film tells the story of identity and deception in a near-future dystopia constantly under intrusive high-technology police surveillance in the midst of a drug...
, and Steven Shainberg
Steven Shainberg
Steven Shainberg is an American film director and producer.He is the nephew of author Lawrence Shainberg. Both are part of the Shainberg family of Memphis, Tennessee, founder of the Shainberg's chain of stores, which is now part of Dollar General.Shainberg received his BA from Yale University in...
's fictional biopic of Diane Arbus
Diane Arbus
Diane Arbus March 14, 1923 – July 26, 1971) was an American photographer and writer noted for black-and-white square photographs of "deviant and marginal people or of people whose normality seems ugly or surreal." A friend said that Arbus said that she was "afraid.....
, Fur
Fur (film)
Fur: An Imaginary Portrait of Diane Arbus is a 2006 film starring Nicole Kidman as iconic American photographer Diane Arbus, who was known for her strange, disturbing images.-Plot synopsis:...
, where Downey's character represented the two biggest influences on Arbus' professional life, Lisette Model
Lisette Model
Lisette Model was an Austrian-born American photographer.Lisette Model was born Elise Felic Amelie Stern in Vienna, Austria...
and Marvin Israel
Marvin Israel
Marvin Israel , was born in Syracuse, New York, the son of Bessie and Harry Israel. He was an American artist, photographer, painter, teacher and art director from New York known for modern/surreal interiors, abstract imagery. Created sinister shadowy and exuberant interiors with implications of...
. Downey also received great notice for his roles in more mainstream fare such as Kiss Kiss Bang Bang
Kiss Kiss Bang Bang
Kiss Kiss Bang Bang is a 2005 crime/dark comedy film, which engages many conventions of the classic film noir genre in a tongue-in-cheek fashion. It is based, in part, on the novel Bodies Are Where You Find Them by Brett Halliday. The cast includes Robert Downey, Jr., Val Kilmer, Michelle Monaghan...
, Disney's poorly received The Shaggy Dog
The Shaggy Dog (2006 film)
The Shaggy Dog is a 2006 film by Walt Disney Pictures. It is the second remake of the 1959 film of the same name, which was first remade as a television film in 1994....
, and David Fincher's 2007 take on one of the most famous unsolved serial killing cases ever, Zodiac
Zodiac (film)
Zodiac is a 2007 American mystery-thriller film directed by David Fincher and based on Robert Graysmith's non-fiction book of the same name. The Paramount Pictures and Warner Bros...
.
On November 23, 2004, Downey released his debut musical album, The Futurist
The Futurist (Robert Downey Jr. album)
-Personnel:*Robert Downey, Jr. — vocals, keyboards*Mark Hudson — acoustic guitar, electric guitar, percussion, background vocals*Cameron Stone — cello*Jeff Bunnell — fluglehorn*Jim Cox and Tom Canning — Hammond B-3 organ*Armand Sabal-Lecco — bass...
, on Sony Classical, for which he designed the cover art and designed the track listing label on the CD with his son Indio. The album received mixed reviews, but Downey stated in 2006 that he probably will not do another album, as he felt that the energy he put into doing the album was not compensated.
In 2006, Downey returned to his television roots when he guest-starred on Family Guy
Family Guy
Family Guy is an American animated television series created by Seth MacFarlane for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series centers on the Griffins, a dysfunctional family consisting of parents Peter and Lois; their children Meg, Chris, and Stewie; and their anthropomorphic pet dog Brian...
in the episode "The Fat Guy Strangler
The Fat Guy Strangler
"The Fat Guy Strangler" is the seventeenth episode of season four of Family Guy, which originally aired on November 27, 2005. Lois discovers she has a long-lost brother, Patrick...
". Downey had previously telephoned the show's production staff and asked if he could produce or assist in an episode creation, as his son is a fan of the show. The producers of the show accepted the offer and created the character of Patrick Pewterschmidt, Lois Griffin
Lois Griffin
Lois Griffin is a character from the animated television series Family Guy. She is voiced by writer Alex Borstein and first appeared on television, along with the rest of the family in the 15-minute short on December 20, 1998. Lois was created and designed by series creator Seth MacFarlane...
's long lost, mentally disturbed brother, for Downey.
Downey signed on with publishers HarperCollins
HarperCollins
HarperCollins is a publishing company owned by News Corporation. It is the combination of the publishers William Collins, Sons and Co Ltd, a British company, and Harper & Row, an American company, itself the result of an earlier merger of Harper & Brothers and Row, Peterson & Company. The worldwide...
to write a memoir, which in 2006 was already being billed as a "candid look at the highs and lows of his life and career". In 2008, however, Downey returned his advance to the publishers and cancelled the book without further comment.
Iron Man and beyond
With all of the critical success Robert Downey, Jr., had experienced throughout his career, he had never appeared in a "blockbuster" filmBlockbuster (entertainment)
Blockbuster, as applied to film or theatre, denotes a very popular or successful production. The entertainment industry use was originally theatrical slang referring to a particularly successful play but is now used primarily by the film industry...
. That changed in the summer of 2008 when Downey starred in two critically and commercially successful films, Iron Man
Iron Man (film)
Iron Man is a 2008 American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name. Directed by Jon Favreau, the film stars Robert Downey, Jr. as Tony Stark, an industrialist and master engineer who builds a powered exoskeleton and becomes the technologically advanced superhero, Iron...
and Tropic Thunder
Tropic Thunder
Tropic Thunder is a 2008 American action satire comedy film written, produced, and directed by Ben Stiller, and starring Stiller, Robert Downey, Jr., and Jack Black. The main plot revolves around a group of prima donna actors who are making a Vietnam War film...
. In the article Ben Stiller wrote for Downey's entry in the 2008 edition of The Time 100
Time 100
Time 100 is an annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world, as assembled by Time. First published in 1999 as a result of a debate among several academics, the list has become an annual event.-History and format:...
, he offered an observation on Downey's commercially successful summer at the box office:
Iron Man
In 2007, Downey was cast as the title characterIron Man
Iron Man is a fictional character, a superhero in the . The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee, developed by scripter Larry Lieber, and designed by artists Don Heck and Jack Kirby, first appearing in Tales of Suspense #39 .A billionaire playboy, industrialist and ingenious engineer,...
in the film Iron Man
Iron Man (film)
Iron Man is a 2008 American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name. Directed by Jon Favreau, the film stars Robert Downey, Jr. as Tony Stark, an industrialist and master engineer who builds a powered exoskeleton and becomes the technologically advanced superhero, Iron...
, with director Jon Favreau
Jon Favreau
Jonathan Kolia "Jon" Favreau is an American actor, screenwriter, film director and comedian. As an actor, he is best known for his roles in Rudy, Swingers , Very Bad Things, and The Break-Up. His notable directorial efforts include Elf, Iron Man and its sequel, and Cowboys & Aliens...
explaining the choice by stating: "Downey, Jr., wasn't the most obvious choice but he understood what makes the character tick. He found a lot of his own life experience in 'Tony Stark'." Favreau insisted in having Downey as he repeatedly claimed that Downey would be to Iron Man what Johnny Depp
Johnny Depp
John Christopher "Johnny" Depp II is an American actor, producer and musician. He has won the Golden Globe Award and Screen Actors Guild award for Best Actor. Depp rose to prominence on the 1980s television series 21 Jump Street, becoming a teen idol...
is to the Pirates of the Caribbean series
Pirates of the Caribbean (film series)
Pirates of the Caribbean is a series of fantasy-adventure films directed by Gore Verbinski and Rob Marshall , written by Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer...
, a lead actor that could both elevate the quality of the film and increase the public's interest in it. For the role Downey had to gain more than 20 pounds of muscle in five months to look like he "had the power to forge iron."
Iron Man
Iron Man (film)
Iron Man is a 2008 American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name. Directed by Jon Favreau, the film stars Robert Downey, Jr. as Tony Stark, an industrialist and master engineer who builds a powered exoskeleton and becomes the technologically advanced superhero, Iron...
was globally released between April 30 and May 3, 2008, grossing over $300 million in the United States and Canada and receiving rave reviews which cite Downey's performance as a highlight of the film. As a result, both Downey and Favreau stated their interest in making Iron Man a trilogy. By October 2008, Downey had agreed to appear as Iron Man in two Iron Man sequels and the future film The Avengers, named after the superhero team that Stark joins. He also made a small appearance as Iron Man's alter ego Tony Stark in the 2008 film The Incredible Hulk
The Incredible Hulk (film)
The Incredible Hulk is a 2008 superhero action film based on the Marvel Comics character the Hulk. It is directed by Louis Leterrier and stars Edward Norton as Dr. Bruce Banner. It is the second film to be released in the Marvel Cinematic Universe...
, as a part of Marvel Studios
Marvel Studios
Marvel Studios, originally Marvel Films, is an American television and motion picture studio based in Manhattan Beach, California. Marvel Studios is a subsidiary of Marvel Entertainment, a self-contained part of the The Walt Disney Company conglomerate....
' attempt to depict the same Marvel Universe
Marvel Universe
The Marvel Universe is the shared fictional universe where most comic book titles and other media published by Marvel Entertainment take place, including those featuring Marvel's most familiar characters, such as Spider-Man, the Hulk, the X-Men, and the Avengers.The Marvel Universe is further...
on film by providing continuity among the movies.
Tropic Thunder
After Iron Man, Downey appeared alongside Ben StillerBen Stiller
Benjamin Edward "Ben" Stiller is an American comedian, actor, writer, film director, and producer. He is the son of veteran comedians and actors Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara....
and Jack Black
Jack Black
Jack Black , is an American actor and musician, notably of Tenacious D.Jack Black may also refer to:* Jack Black , late 19th - early 20th Century author and hobo* Jack Black , drummer for 1970s UK punk band The Boys...
in another 2008 summer film, the Stiller-directed Tropic Thunder
Tropic Thunder
Tropic Thunder is a 2008 American action satire comedy film written, produced, and directed by Ben Stiller, and starring Stiller, Robert Downey, Jr., and Jack Black. The main plot revolves around a group of prima donna actors who are making a Vietnam War film...
. Each man plays a Hollywood archetype—self-absorbed multi-Oscar winning Aussie method actor Kirk Lazarus (Downey), aging action hero desperately looking to reinvent himself as a serious actor (Stiller), and overweight heroin-addicted self-destructive comic best known for portraying multiple characters in a franchise of comedies about a family that farts in every film (Black)—as they star in an extremely expensive Vietnam-era film called Tropic Thunder. Lazarus undergoes a "controversial skin pigmentation procedure" in order to take on the role of African-American platoon sergeant Lincoln Osiris, which required Downey to wear dark makeup and a wig. Both Stiller and Downey feared Downey's portrayal of the character could become controversial:
When asked by Harry Smith on CBS's The Early Show who his model was for Lazarus, Downey laughed before responding, "Sadly, my sorry-ass self."
Released in the United States on August 13, 2008, Tropic Thunder received good reviews with 83% of reviews positive and an average normalized score of 71, according to the review aggregator websites Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
and Metacritic
Metacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
, respectively. It earned US$26 million in its North American opening weekend and retained the number one position for its first three weekends of release. The film grossed $180 million in theaters before its release on home video on November 18, 2008. Downey was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal as Lazarus.
Post-Iron Man career
Opening in late April 2009 was a film Downey finished in mid-2008, The SoloistThe Soloist
The Soloist is a 2009 American/French/British drama film directed by Joe Wright, and starring Jamie Foxx and Robert Downey, Jr. The screenplay by Susannah Grant is based on the book, The Soloist by Steve Lopez...
; the film was pushed out from a November 2008 release by Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
due to the studio's tight end-of-year release schedule. Critics who had seen the film in 2008 were mentioning it as a possible Academy Award candidate. Downey still picked up an Academy Award nomination for the 2008 release year for his role in Tropic Thunder, but did not garner similar recognition for The Soloist after its delayed release.
The first role Downey accepted after Iron Man was the title character
Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes is a fictional detective created by Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The fantastic London-based "consulting detective", Holmes is famous for his astute logical reasoning, his ability to take almost any disguise, and his use of forensic science skills to solve...
in Guy Ritchie's Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes (2009 film)
Sherlock Holmes is a 2009 action-mystery film based on the character of the same name created by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The film was directed by Guy Ritchie and produced by Joel Silver, Lionel Wigram, Susan Downey and Dan Lin. The screenplay by Michael Robert Johnson, Anthony Peckham and Simon...
. Warner Bros.
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
released on December 25, 2009. The film set several box office records in the United States for a Christmas Day release, beating the previous record holder, 2008's Marley & Me
Marley & Me (film)
Marley & Me is a 2008 American comedy-drama film directed by David Frankel. The screenplay by Scott Frank and Don Roos is based on the memoir of the same name by John Grogan...
, by nearly $10M, and finished second only to Avatar in a record-setting Christmas weekend release at the films. Sherlock Holmes ended up being the 8th highest grossing film of 2009. When Downey won the Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Motion Picture Musical or Comedy from the Hollywood Foreign Press Association for his role as Sherlock Holmes, he noted in his acceptance speech that he had prepared no remarks because "my wife (Sherlock Holmes producer Susan Downey
Susan Downey
Susan Nicole Downey is an American film producer. Until February 2009 she was Co-President of Dark Castle Entertainment and Executive Vice President of Production at Silver Pictures, Joel Silver's production company, but has since stepped down to work more closely with her husband, actor Robert...
) told me at 10:00 this morning that Matt Damon
Matt Damon
Matthew Paige "Matt" Damon is an American actor, screenwriter, and philanthropist whose career was launched following the success of the film Good Will Hunting , from a screenplay he co-wrote with friend Ben Affleck...
(nominated for his role in The Informant!) was going to win." In 2010, Robert Downey, Jr. signed on to reprise his role as Sherlock Holmes in Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows
Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows
Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows is an upcoming 2011 British-American action mystery film directed by Guy Ritchie and produced by Joel Silver, Lionel Wigram, Susan Downey, and Dan Lin. It is a sequel to the 2009 film Sherlock Holmes, based on the character of the same name created by Sir Arthur...
(due for release Christmas 2011).
Downey has signed on to reprise his role as Tony Stark in The Avengers (to be released in 2012) and Iron Man 3 (to be released in 2013).
Music career
Robert Downey, Jr. has sung on several soundtracks in his films such as Chaplin, Too Much SunToo Much Sun
Too Much Sun is a 1990 film directed by Robert Downey Sr.. It was filmed in Beverly Hills, California, USA and Los Angeles, California, USA,.-Availability:...
, Two Girls and a Guy
Two Girls and a Guy
Two Girls and a Guy is a film produced in 1997 by Edward R. Pressman and Chris Hanley. The director was James Toback, who also wrote the screenplay.-Plot:...
, Friends and Lovers, The Singing Detective
The Singing Detective (film)
The Singing Detective is a 2003 film based on the BBC serial The Singing Detective, a work by Dennis Potter. It stars Robert Downey, Jr...
and Kiss Kiss Bang Bang
Kiss Kiss Bang Bang
Kiss Kiss Bang Bang is a 2005 crime/dark comedy film, which engages many conventions of the classic film noir genre in a tongue-in-cheek fashion. It is based, in part, on the novel Bodies Are Where You Find Them by Brett Halliday. The cast includes Robert Downey, Jr., Val Kilmer, Michelle Monaghan...
. He released a CD in 2004 called The Futurist
The Futurist (Robert Downey Jr. album)
-Personnel:*Robert Downey, Jr. — vocals, keyboards*Mark Hudson — acoustic guitar, electric guitar, percussion, background vocals*Cameron Stone — cello*Jeff Bunnell — fluglehorn*Jim Cox and Tom Canning — Hammond B-3 organ*Armand Sabal-Lecco — bass...
, and while promoting his film Tropic Thunder
Tropic Thunder
Tropic Thunder is a 2008 American action satire comedy film written, produced, and directed by Ben Stiller, and starring Stiller, Robert Downey, Jr., and Jack Black. The main plot revolves around a group of prima donna actors who are making a Vietnam War film...
, he and his co-stars Ben Stiller
Ben Stiller
Benjamin Edward "Ben" Stiller is an American comedian, actor, writer, film director, and producer. He is the son of veteran comedians and actors Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara....
and Jack Black
Jack Black
Jack Black , is an American actor and musician, notably of Tenacious D.Jack Black may also refer to:* Jack Black , late 19th - early 20th Century author and hobo* Jack Black , drummer for 1970s UK punk band The Boys...
were back up singers "The Pips" to Gladys Knight
Gladys Knight
Gladys Maria Knight , known as the "Empress of Soul", is an American singer-songwriter, actress, businesswoman, humanitarian, and author...
singing "Midnight Train to Georgia
Midnight Train to Georgia
"Midnight Train to Georgia" is a 1973 number-one hit single by Gladys Knight & the Pips, their second release after departing Motown Records for Buddah Records...
".
Awards and recognition
- In 1992, Downey became the first cast member of Saturday Night LiveSaturday Night LiveSaturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...
to be nominated for a Best Actor Oscar, which he garnered for 1992's Chaplin. Though he lost the award to Al PacinoAl PacinoAlfredo James "Al" Pacino is an American film and stage actor and director. He is famous for playing mobsters, including Michael Corleone in The Godfather trilogy, Tony Montana in Scarface, Alphonse "Big Boy" Caprice in Dick Tracy and Carlito Brigante in Carlito's Way, though he has also appeared...
in Scent of a WomanScent of a WomanThis article is about the American film. For the Korean drama, see Scent of a Woman .Scent of a Woman is a 1992 drama film directed by Martin Brest that tells the story of a preparatory school student who takes a job as an assistant to an irascible, blind, medically retired Army officer...
, he won the BAFTA (the awards given by the British Academy for Film and Television Arts, the U.K. equivalent of the Oscars) for Best Actor for Chaplin, in Chaplin's own native country. - In 1993, Downey won a Saturn AwardSaturn AwardThe Saturn Award is an award presented annually by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films to honor the top works in science fiction, fantasy, and horror in film, television, and home video. The Saturn Awards were devised by Dr. Donald A. Reed in 1972, who felt that films within...
for Best Male Actor (Film) for Heart and SoulsHeart and SoulsHeart and Souls is a 1993 fantasy/comedy film about the souls of four deceased people who are trapped on earth and can only be seen by a single living human being who is recruited to help them take care of their unfinished business...
, an early sign of fan recognition of his talent leading to guild-level awards. He would later win a second in 2009 for his portrayal of the titular character in Iron ManIron Man (film)Iron Man is a 2008 American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name. Directed by Jon Favreau, the film stars Robert Downey, Jr. as Tony Stark, an industrialist and master engineer who builds a powered exoskeleton and becomes the technologically advanced superhero, Iron...
. - Downey's 1993 film Short CutsShort CutsShort Cuts is a 1993 American drama film directed by Robert Altman. Filmed from a screenplay by Robert Altman and Frank Barhydt, it is inspired by nine short stories and a poem by Raymond Carver...
, an ensemble piece directed by legendary filmmaker Robert AltmanRobert AltmanRobert Bernard Altman was an American film director and screenwriter known for making films that are highly naturalistic, but with a stylized perspective. In 2006, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences recognized his body of work with an Academy Honorary Award.His films MASH , McCabe and...
, received two "Best Ensemble Cast" awards, one from the Venice Film Festival, and the other from the 1993 Golden Globes. - As of 2010, Downey has three Golden Globe AwardGolden Globe AwardThe Golden Globe Award is an accolade bestowed by the 93 members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association recognizing excellence in film and television, both domestic and foreign...
s to his name: A "Best Ensemble Cast" Globe for 1993's Short CutsShort CutsShort Cuts is a 1993 American drama film directed by Robert Altman. Filmed from a screenplay by Robert Altman and Frank Barhydt, it is inspired by nine short stories and a poem by Raymond Carver...
, a "Best Supporting Actor – Television" Globe for his 2000 turn in Ally McBealAlly McBealAlly McBeal is an American legal comedy-drama series which aired on the Fox network from 1997 to 2002. The series was created by David E. Kelley, who also served as the executive producer, along with Bill D'Elia...
, and a 2010 Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy for his 2009 portrayal of the titular character in Sherlock HolmesSherlock Holmes (2009 film)Sherlock Holmes is a 2009 action-mystery film based on the character of the same name created by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The film was directed by Guy Ritchie and produced by Joel Silver, Lionel Wigram, Susan Downey and Dan Lin. The screenplay by Michael Robert Johnson, Anthony Peckham and Simon...
. - The Screen Actors Guild also recognized his 2000 Ally McBeal performance by giving him the Outstanding Actor in a Comedy Series award.
- In 2003, shortly after Downey returned to the acting world clean and sober, he received a Career Achievement Award from the Chicago International Film Festival.
- Also in 2003, Downey picked up the Best Actor award from the Sitges Film Festival for his work in The Singing DetectiveThe Singing Detective (film)The Singing Detective is a 2003 film based on the BBC serial The Singing Detective, a work by Dennis Potter. It stars Robert Downey, Jr...
. - In 2004, Downey was named "Man of the Year" by Harvard's Hasty Pudding TheatricalsHasty Pudding TheatricalsThe Hasty Pudding Theatricals, known informally simply as The Pudding, is a theatrical student society at Harvard University, known for its burlesque musicals and for its status as the oldest collegiate theatrical organization in the United States...
. - The 2006 large ensemble piece A Guide to Recognizing Your SaintsA Guide to Recognizing Your SaintsA Guide to Recognizing Your Saints is a 2006 American drama film based on a 2001 memoir of the same name by author and musician Dito Montiel, which describes his youth in Astoria, New York during the 1980s....
, a film Downey co-produced, received a special jury prize for Dramatic film from the Sundance Film Festival. - In May 2008, Downey was named to the annual list of The Time Magazine 100 Most Influential PeopleTime 100Time 100 is an annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world, as assembled by Time. First published in 1999 as a result of a debate among several academics, the list has become an annual event.-History and format:...
. - In October 2008, Paramount Pictures began advertising for Downey to receive an Academy Awards nomination for Best Supporting ActorAcademy Award for Best Supporting ActorPerformance by an Actor in a Supporting Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry. Since its inception, however, the...
for his role in Tropic Thunder. In a November 2008 issue of Entertainment WeeklyEntertainment WeeklyEntertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
, Downey's performance as self-important Australian method actor Kirk Lazarus was considered one of three sure contenders for the best supporting actor award. As a way of extending the film-within-a-film "universe" into real life, there had also been at least two online "For Your Consideration" ads touting Downey's character, Kirk Lazarus, for Best Supporting Actor; one of these contains "scenes" from the faux trailer for Satan's Alley that were not in the trailer as released in theaters. GetTheBigPicture.net has verified that at least one of these ads was definitely produced by Paramount and intended for early FYC awareness for Downey's role. - In October 2008, Downey was ranked at No.4 on AskMen.comAskMen.comAskMen.com is a free online men’s web portal, with international versions in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, and Australia.-History:...
online magazine's 49 Most Influential Men in 2008. - In November 2008, Downey was named by Entertainment WeeklyEntertainment WeeklyEntertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
as "Entertainer of the Year". - Throughout the end of 2008 and the beginning of 2009, Downey was repeatedly nominated for awards based on his 2008 body of work, most frequently garnering Best Supporting Actor nominations for his portrayal of Kirk Lazarus in Tropic Thunder; however, Downey's Tropic Thunder performance usually finished behind Heath Ledger's star-turn as The Joker in The Dark KnightThe Dark Knight (film)The Dark Knight is a 2008 superhero film directed, produced and co-written by Christopher Nolan. Based on the DC Comics character Batman, the film is part of Nolan's Batman film series and a sequel to 2005's Batman Begins...
. - On December 11, 2008, Downey picked up a nomination for one of the more significant awards, receiving a Golden Globe nominationGolden Globe AwardThe Golden Globe Award is an accolade bestowed by the 93 members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association recognizing excellence in film and television, both domestic and foreign...
for Best Supporting Actor in Tropic Thunder. - Downey picked up his first win of the 2008 award season as part of the Boston Society of Film Critics' Best Ensemble Cast for Tropic Thunder.
- In December 2008, ShoWest Convention saluted him as "Actor of the Year".
- In early 2009, Downey won the COFCA Award for Best Actor in Iron ManIron Man (film)Iron Man is a 2008 American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name. Directed by Jon Favreau, the film stars Robert Downey, Jr. as Tony Stark, an industrialist and master engineer who builds a powered exoskeleton and becomes the technologically advanced superhero, Iron...
from the Central Ohio Film Critics Association. - On January 22, 2009, Downey was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in Tropic ThunderTropic ThunderTropic Thunder is a 2008 American action satire comedy film written, produced, and directed by Ben Stiller, and starring Stiller, Robert Downey, Jr., and Jack Black. The main plot revolves around a group of prima donna actors who are making a Vietnam War film...
. - On 2009 Downey was nominated for three awards: Favorite Male Movie Star, Favorite Superhero, and Favorite Male Action Star at People's Choice AwardsPeople's Choice AwardsThe People's Choice Awards is an American awards show recognizing the people and the work of popular culture. The show has been held annually since 1975 and is voted on by the general public. The People's Choice Awards air on CBS and are produced by Procter & Gamble and Survivor magnate Mark Burnett...
. - On February 15, 2009, Downey won best international actor for Iron ManIron Man (film)Iron Man is a 2008 American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name. Directed by Jon Favreau, the film stars Robert Downey, Jr. as Tony Stark, an industrialist and master engineer who builds a powered exoskeleton and becomes the technologically advanced superhero, Iron...
at the Irish Film and Television AwardsIrish Film and Television AwardsThe Irish Film and Television Awards were first awarded in 2003. Its sole aim is to celebrate Ireland's notably talented film and television community...
, his fourth win for the 2008 awards season. - In November 2009, Downey was number 5 in People Magazine's "The Sexiest Man Alive 2009".
- On January 17, 2010, Downey won the Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Comedy Or Musical for his role in Sherlock Holmes. However, he failed to earn an Academy Award nomination for the same performance.
- On 25 June 2010, Downey was voted "Sexiest Man In The World" by the Hungarian magazine Periodika. http://www.premierfilm.hu/hir/0101102712100_robert_downey_jr_a_legszexisebb.html
- On October 14, 2011 Downey was the 25th recipient of the American Cinematheque AwardAmerican Cinematheque AwardThe American Cinematheque Award annually honors "an extraordinary artist in the entertainment industry who is fully engaged in his or her work and is committed to making a significant contribution to the art of the motion pictures".*Robert Downey Jr - 2011...
.
Production company
On June 14, 2010, Robert Downey, Jr. and his wife Susan, opened their own production company called Team Downey. Their first project will be the Steve McQueenSteve McQueen
Terrence Steven "Steve" McQueen was an American movie actor. He was nicknamed "The King of Cool." His "anti-hero" persona, which he developed at the height of the Vietnam counterculture, made him one of the top box-office draws of the 1960s and 1970s. McQueen received an Academy Award nomination...
script, Yucatan, which is a heist film.
Personal life
Downey started dating actress Sarah Jessica ParkerSarah Jessica Parker
Sarah Jessica Parker is an American film, television, and theater actress and producer.She is best known for her leading role as Carrie Bradshaw on the HBO television series Sex and the City , for which she won four Golden Globe Awards, three Screen Actors Guild Awards, and two Emmy Awards...
after meeting her on the set of Firstborn
Firstborn (film)
Firstborn is a 1984 drama film starring Teri Garr, Peter Weller, Christopher Collet, Corey Haim , Sarah Jessica Parker and Robert Downey Jr....
. They separated in 1991 because of his drug addiction, according to Downey. He married actress/singer Deborah Falconer on May 29, 1992, after a 42-day courtship, and had a son with her, Indio Falconer Downey, born on September 7, 1993 in Los Angeles County, California
Los Angeles County, California
Los Angeles County is a county in the U.S. state of California. As of 2010 U.S. Census, the county had a population of 9,818,605, making it the most populous county in the United States. Los Angeles County alone is more populous than 42 individual U.S. states...
. The strain on their marriage from Downey's repeated trips to rehab and jail finally reached a breaking point; in 2001, in the midst of Downey's last arrest and sentencing to an extended stay in rehab, Falconer left Downey and took Indio with her. Downey and Falconer finalized their divorce on April 26, 2004. Downey now sees his son frequently after settling custody arrangements with Falconer.
In 2003, on the set of Gothika, Downey met producer Susan Levin
Susan Downey
Susan Nicole Downey is an American film producer. Until February 2009 she was Co-President of Dark Castle Entertainment and Executive Vice President of Production at Silver Pictures, Joel Silver's production company, but has since stepped down to work more closely with her husband, actor Robert...
, an Executive Vice President of Production at Joel Silver
Joel Silver
Joel Silver is an American Hollywood film producer, co-creator of the sport of Ultimate, co-founder of Dark Castle Entertainment and owner of Silver Pictures.-Life and career:...
's film company, Silver Pictures
Silver Pictures
Silver Pictures is a film production company founded by Hollywood producer Joel Silver during 1985. All movies after Ricochet have been distributed by Warner Bros and its subsidiary New Line Cinema.-Films:-Television series:*Moonlight...
. Downey and Susan quietly struck up a romance during production, though Susan turned down his romantic advances twice. Despite Susan's worries that the romance would not last after the completion of shooting because "he's an actor; I have a real job", the couple's relationship continued after production wrapped on Gothika, and Downey proposed to Susan on the night before her thirtieth birthday. The couple were married on August 27, 2005, in a Jewish ceremony at Amagansett, New York
Amagansett, New York
Amagansett is a census-designated place that roughly corresponds to the hamlet by the same name in the town of East Hampton in Suffolk County, New York on the South Shore of Long Island. As of the United States 2000 Census, the CDP population was 1,067. Amagansett hamlet was founded in 1680.The...
. He credits his wife with helping him kick his drug and alcohol habits."There's no understanding for me of the bigger picture in real time in a hands-on way without her. Because it was the perfect, perfect, perfect matching of personalities and gifts." One of his biceps reads "Suzie Q" in tribute to her. The couple are expecting their first child in February 2012.
Downey says he has been drug-free since July 2003, thanks to his family, therapy, meditation
Buddhist meditation
Buddhist meditation refers to the meditative practices associated with the religion and philosophy of Buddhism.Core meditation techniques have been preserved in ancient Buddhist texts and have proliferated and diversified through teacher-student transmissions. Buddhists pursue meditation as part of...
, twelve-step recovery programs
Twelve-step program
A Twelve-Step Program is a set of guiding principles outlining a course of action for recovery from addiction, compulsion, or other behavioral problems...
, yoga
Yoga
Yoga is a physical, mental, and spiritual discipline, originating in ancient India. The goal of yoga, or of the person practicing yoga, is the attainment of a state of perfect spiritual insight and tranquility while meditating on Supersoul...
and the practice of Wing Chun
Wing Chun
Wing Chun , also romanised as Ving Tsun or Wing Tsun, ; ; is a concept-based Chinese martial art and form of self-defense utilizing both striking and grappling while specializing in close-range combat.The alternative characters 永春 "eternal spring" are also...
Kung Fu. He has described his religious beliefs as "Jewish-Buddhist" although he has been interested in the past in Christianity and the Hare Krishna
International Society for Krishna Consciousness
The International Society for Krishna Consciousness , known colloquially as the Hare Krishna movement, is a Gaudiya Vaishnava religious organization. It was founded in 1966 in New York City by A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada...
ideology. In a panel discussion, Rachel McAdams
Rachel McAdams
Rachel Anne McAdams is a Canadian actress. After graduating from a theatre program at York University, Toronto in 2001, she worked steadily as an actress until finding fame in 2004 with starring roles in teen comedy Mean Girls and romantic drama The Notebook...
, who co-starred with Downey in Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes (2009 film)
Sherlock Holmes is a 2009 action-mystery film based on the character of the same name created by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The film was directed by Guy Ritchie and produced by Joel Silver, Lionel Wigram, Susan Downey and Dan Lin. The screenplay by Michael Robert Johnson, Anthony Peckham and Simon...
, called him a "superhero" for his "committed" work ethic. On the same panel, Downey described how he worked long hours and many weekends to ensure the accuracy of his portrayal of Holmes so as to help make the film a success.
Downey has been a close friend of Mel Gibson
Mel Gibson
Mel Colm-Cille Gerard Gibson, AO is an American actor, film director, producer and screenwriter. Born in Peekskill, New York, Gibson moved with his parents to Sydney, Australia when he was 12 years old and later studied acting at the Australian National Institute of Dramatic Art.After appearing in...
since they starred in Air America. Downey defended Gibson during the controversy surrounding The Passion of the Christ
The Passion of the Christ
The Passion of the Christ is a 2004 American drama film directed by Mel Gibson and starring Jim Caviezel as Jesus. It depicts the Passion of Jesus largely according to the New Testament Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John...
, and said "nobody's perfect" in reference to Gibson's DUI. Said Downey of Gibson:
Downey has indicated that his time in prison changed his political point of view somewhat, saying: "I have a really interesting political point of view, and it's not always something I say too loud at dinner tables here, but you can't go from a $2,000-a-night suite at La Mirage to a penitentiary and really understand it and come out a liberal. You can't. I wouldn't wish that experience on anyone else, but it was very, very, very educational for me and has informed my proclivities and politics ever since."
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1970 | Pound Pound (film) Pound is a 1970 film directed and written by Robert Downey, Sr., it was based on The Comeuppance, an off-off broadway play written by Downey in 1961. It is about several dogs at a pound, the dogs are played by human actors. The film is notable as being the screen debut of Robert Downey, Jr., the... |
Puppy Puppy A puppy is a juvenile dog. Some puppies may weigh , while larger ones can weigh up to . All healthy puppies grow quickly after birth. A puppy's coat color may change as the puppy grows older, as is commonly seen in breeds such as the Yorkshire Terrier... |
Directed by Robert Downey, Sr. |
| 1972 | Greaser's Palace Greaser's Palace Greaser's Palace is a 1972 American cult film directed by underground filmmaker Robert Downey, Sr. A parable based on the life of Christ, it is full of references about the destruction of the world.-Plot:... |
uncredited | Directed by Robert Downey, Sr. |
| 1975 | Moment to Moment | uncredited | Directed by Robert Downey, Sr. |
| 1980 | Up the Academy Up the Academy MAD Magazine Presents Up the Academy is an American teen comedy film released in 1980, with a plot about the outrageous antics of a group of misfits at a military school.-Production:... |
Caleb Yoon | Directed by Robert Downey, Sr. |
| 1983 | Baby It's You Baby It's You (film) Baby It's You is an American film released in 1983 written and directed by John Sayles. It stars Rosanna Arquette and Vincent Spano.This was Sayles' first film for a major Hollywood studio... |
Stewart | |
| 1984 | Firstborn Firstborn (film) Firstborn is a 1984 drama film starring Teri Garr, Peter Weller, Christopher Collet, Corey Haim , Sarah Jessica Parker and Robert Downey Jr.... |
Lee | |
| 1985 | Deadwait | Short subject | |
| 1985 | Tuff Turf Tuff Turf Tuff Turf is a 1985 American drama film starring James Spader and Kim Richards. The film was released in the United States on January 11, 1985.-Plot:... |
Jimmy Parker | |
| 1985 | Weird Science Weird Science (film) Weird Science is a 1985 American teen comedy film written and directed by John Hughes and starring Anthony Michael Hall, Ilan Mitchell-Smith, and Kelly LeBrock... |
Ian | |
| 1986 | Back to School | Derek Lutz | Directed by Alan Metter Alan Metter Alan Metter is an American film director whose most notable credits include Back to School starring Rodney Dangerfield, and Girls Just Want to Have Fun with Sarah Jessica Parker... |
| 1986 | America | Paulie Hackley | Directed by Robert Downey, Sr. |
| 1987 | Jack Jericho | ||
| 1987 | Less Than Zero Less Than Zero (film) Less Than Zero is a 1987 American drama film loosely based on Bret Easton Ellis' novel of the same name. The film stars Andrew McCarthy as Clay, a college freshman returning home for Christmas to spend time with his ex-girlfriend Blair and his friend Julian , who is also a drug addict... |
Julian Wells Less Than Zero (film) Less Than Zero is a 1987 American drama film loosely based on Bret Easton Ellis' novel of the same name. The film stars Andrew McCarthy as Clay, a college freshman returning home for Christmas to spend time with his ex-girlfriend Blair and his friend Julian , who is also a drug addict... |
|
| 1988 | Johnny Be Good Johnny Be Good Johnny Be Good is a 1988 American comedy film directed by Bud Smith, starring Anthony Michael Hall as the main character, Johnny Walker. The film also features Robert Downey Jr., Steve James, Jennifer Tilly and Uma Thurman in her film debut... |
Leo Wiggins | Also stars Robert Downey, Sr. |
| 1988 | 1969 1969 (film) 1969 is a 1988 drama film starring Robert Downey, Jr., Kiefer Sutherland, and Winona Ryder. It was written and directed by Ernest Thompson. The original music score is composed by Michael Small... |
Ralph Karr | |
| 1988 | Rented Lips Rented Lips Rented Lips is a 1988 feature film. The movie was filmed in Beverly Hills and Los Angeles, California. -Premise:In this comedy film, a pair of naive documentarians find themselves in over their heads when they agree to finish an "art film" for the head of a local public television... |
Wolf Dangler | Directed by Robert Downey, Sr. |
| 1989 | That's Adequate That's Adequate That's Adequate is a 1989 mockumentary documenting a fictional Hollywood studio, Adequate Film Studios. Narrated and hosted by Tony Randall, the film features an all-star cast including James Coco, Robert Downey, Jr., Anne Meara, Jerry Stiller, and Bruce Willis.... |
Albert Einstein Albert Einstein Albert Einstein was a German-born theoretical physicist who developed the theory of general relativity, effecting a revolution in physics. For this achievement, Einstein is often regarded as the father of modern physics and one of the most prolific intellects in human history... |
|
| 1989 | True Believer True Believer (1989 film) True Believer is a 1989 courtroom drama directed by Joseph Ruben and released by Columbia Pictures.-Synopsis:The film stars James Woods as burnt-out attorney Eddie Dodd, who has left behind civil rights work to defend drug dealers. Robert Downey Jr... |
Roger Baron | |
| 1989 | Chances Are Chances Are (film) Chances Are is a 1989 romantic comedy film written by Perry & Randy Howze and directed by Emile Ardolino. Starring Cybill Shepherd, Robert Downey, Jr., Ryan O'Neal, and Mary Stuart Masterson. The original music score was composed by Maurice Jarre.-Plot:... |
Alex Finch | |
| 1990 | Air America Air America (film) Air America is a 1990 American action comedy film directed by Roger Spottiswoode, starring Mel Gibson and Robert Downey Jr. as Air America pilots, during the Vietnam War, flying missions in Laos... |
Billy Covington | |
| 1991 | Too Much Sun Too Much Sun Too Much Sun is a 1990 film directed by Robert Downey Sr.. It was filmed in Beverly Hills, California, USA and Los Angeles, California, USA,.-Availability:... |
Reed Richmond | Directed by Robert Downey, Sr. |
| 1991 | Soapdish Soapdish Soapdish is a 1991 comedy film which tells a backstage story of the cast and crew of a popular fictional television soap opera. It stars Sally Field as an aging soap star, joined by Kevin Kline, Robert Downey, Jr., Elisabeth Shue, Whoopi Goldberg, Teri Hatcher, Cathy Moriarty, Garry Marshall, Kathy... |
David Seton Barnes | |
| 1992 | Chaplin | Charlie Chaplin Charlie Chaplin Sir Charles Spencer "Charlie" Chaplin, KBE was an English comic actor, film director and composer best known for his work during the silent film era. He became the most famous film star in the world before the end of World War I... |
BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role Best Actor in a Leading Role is a British Academy Film award presented annually by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding leading performance in a film.-Superlatives:... London Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor London Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor The London Film Critics Circle Award for Actor of the Year in an annual award given by the London Film Critics Circle.-2000s:-2010s:... Nominated—Academy Award for Best Actor Academy Award for Best Actor Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry... Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama |
| 1993 | Heart and Souls Heart and Souls Heart and Souls is a 1993 fantasy/comedy film about the souls of four deceased people who are trapped on earth and can only be seen by a single living human being who is recruited to help them take care of their unfinished business... |
Thomas Reilly | Saturn Award for Best Actor Saturn Award for Best Actor The Saturn Award is an award presented annually by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films to honor the top works in science fiction, fantasy, and horror in film, television, and home video. The Saturn Awards were devised by Dr. Donald A. Reed, who felt that films within those genres... |
| 1993 | Himself | documentary written by Downey | |
| 1993 | Short Cuts Short Cuts Short Cuts is a 1993 American drama film directed by Robert Altman. Filmed from a screenplay by Robert Altman and Frank Barhydt, it is inspired by nine short stories and a poem by Raymond Carver... |
Bill Bush | Golden Globe for Best Ensemble Cast Golden Globe Award The Golden Globe Award is an accolade bestowed by the 93 members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association recognizing excellence in film and television, both domestic and foreign... Volpi Cup Volpi Cup The Volpi Cups are the principal awards given to actors at the Venice Film Festival. Formal acting awards were introduced in the second festival . Initially they were called Great Gold Medals of the National Fascist Association for Entertainment. The name Volpi Cup was introduced the following year... |
| 1994 | Hail Caesar Hail Caesar (1994 film) Hail Caesar is a 1994 American heavy metal comedy film directed by Anthony Michael Hall and starring Hall, Robert Downey, Jr., Samuel L. Jackson, Judd Nelson, and Bobbie Phillips.-Plot:... |
Jerry | also stars Robert Downey, Sr. |
| 1994 | documentary | ||
| 1994 | Natural Born Killers Natural Born Killers Natural Born Killers is a 1994 crime/black comedy film directed by Oliver Stone about two victims of traumatic childhoods who became lovers and psychopathic serial killers, and are irresponsibly glorified by the mass media... |
Wayne Gale | |
| 1994 | Only You Only You (1994 film) Only You is a 1994 romantic comedy film written by Diane Drake and directed and coproduced by Norman Jewison. It stars Marisa Tomei as a young woman who searches for a man whom she believes is her soulmate and Robert Downey Jr. as a young man she meets along the way... |
Peter Wright, alias Damon | |
| 1995 | Richard III Richard III (1995 film) Richard III is a 1995 drama film adapted from William Shakespeare's play of the same name, starring Ian McKellen, Annette Bening, Jim Broadbent, Robert Downey Jr., Nigel Hawthorne, Kristin Scott Thomas, Maggie Smith, John Wood and Dominic West.... |
Earl Rivers Anthony Woodville, 2nd Earl Rivers Anthony Woodville, 2nd Earl Rivers was an English nobleman, courtier, and writer.He was the eldest son of Richard Woodville, 1st Earl Rivers and Jacquetta of Luxembourg. Like his father, he was originally a Lancastrian, fighting on that side at the Battle of Towton, but later became a Yorkist... |
|
| 1995 | Home for the Holidays Home for the Holidays (film) Home for the Holidays is a 1995 comedy-drama film directed by Jodie Foster and produced by Peggy Rajski and Jodie Foster. The screenplay was by W. D. Richter based on the short story by Chris Radant... |
Tommy Larson | |
| 1995 | Restoration | Robert Merivel | |
| 1997 | Danger Zone Danger Zone (film) Danger Zone is a 1996 film directed by Allan Eastman and starring Billy Zane and Robert Downey Jr.-Cast:* Billy Zane .... Rick Morgan* Robert Downey Jr. .... Jim Scott* Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa .... Monsieur Chang* Lisa Collins .... Dr. Kim Woods... |
Jim Scott | |
| 1997 | One Night Stand One Night Stand (1997 film) One Night Stand is a 1997 drama film by British director Mike Figgis. The first draft of the screenplay was written by Joe Eszterhas, who had his name removed from the project following Figgis' rewrite.-Plot summary:... |
Charlie | Boston Society of Film Critics Award for (3rd place) Best Supporting Actor |
| 1997 | Two Girls and a Guy Two Girls and a Guy Two Girls and a Guy is a film produced in 1997 by Edward R. Pressman and Chris Hanley. The director was James Toback, who also wrote the screenplay.-Plot:... |
Blake Allen | |
| 1997 | Hugo Pool Hugo Pool Hugo Pool is a 1997 American comedy-drama film starring Alyssa Milano and Patrick Dempsey and directed by Robert Downey, Sr.-Plot:... |
Franz Mazur | Directed by Robert Downey, Sr. |
| 1998 | Clyde Pell | ||
| 1998 | U.S. Marshals U.S. Marshals (film) U.S. Marshals is a 1998 action thriller film starring Tommy Lee Jones and Wesley Snipes, and a sequel to The Fugitive. The storyline of U.S. Marshals does not feature the character Dr. Richard Kimble; the role of the protagonist has been passed onto Samuel Gerard and his team of U.S... |
Special Agent John Royce | |
| 1999 | In Dreams In Dreams (film) In Dreams is a 1999 psychological thriller film directed by Neil Jordan. It stars Annette Bening as a New England illustrator who begins experiencing visions of a missing child who turns out to be her own daughter; through her dreams, she begins having psychic connections to a serial killer ... |
Vivian Thompson | |
| 1999 | Friends & Lovers | Hans | |
| 1999 | Bowfinger Bowfinger Bowfinger is a 1999 comedy cult film directed by Frank Oz. It depicts a down-and-out filmmaker in Hollywood attempting to make a film on a small budget with a star who does not know that he is in the film... |
Jerry Renfro | |
| 1999 | Black and White Black and White (1999 film) Black and White is a 1999 American film directed by James Toback, starring Robert Downey, Jr., Gaby Hoffmann, Allan Houston, Jared Leto, Scott Caan, Claudia Schiffer, Brooke Shields and a number of rap musicians, namely members of the Wu-Tang Clan and Onyx .The... |
Terry Donager | |
| 2000 | Wonder Boys Wonder Boys (film) Wonder Boys is a dark comedy film based on the 1995 novel of the same title by Michael Chabon. Directed by Curtis Hanson, it stars Michael Douglas as professor Grady Tripp, a novelist who teaches creative writing at an unnamed Pittsburgh university... |
Terry Crabtree | Male Screen Idol Award Outfest Outfest is an LGBT-oriented film showcase and festival in Los Angeles, California. Founded in 1982 as the "Gay and Lesbian Media Festival and Conference", the name was changed to Outfest in 1994.-Programs:... |
| 2000 | Auto Motives | Rob | short subject |
| 2002 | Lethargy | Animal therapist | short subject |
| 2003 | Whatever We Do | Bobby | short subject |
| 2003 | Dan Dark | Festival de Cine de Sitges Award for Best Actor Festival de Cine de Sitges The Sitges Film Festival is a Spanish film festival that is one of the most recognizable ones held in Europe, considered the world's foremost international festival specializing in fantasy and horror movies... Nominated—Satellite Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy |
|
| 2003 | Charlie: The Life and Art of Charles Chaplin | Himself | documentary |
| 2003 | Gothika Gothika -Box office:Gothika was released on November 21, 2003 in North America, grossing $19,288,438 in the opening weekend and ranking at #2, behind The Cat in the Hat. It went on to gross $59,694,580 in the domestic market and $81,896,744 from foreign markets for a worldwide total of $141,591,324... |
Pete Graham | Produced by Susan Downey Susan Downey Susan Nicole Downey is an American film producer. Until February 2009 she was Co-President of Dark Castle Entertainment and Executive Vice President of Production at Silver Pictures, Joel Silver's production company, but has since stepped down to work more closely with her husband, actor Robert... |
| 2004 | Eros Eros (film) Eros is a 2004 portmanteau film consisting of three short films: Wong Kar-wai's The Hand, Steven Soderbergh's Equilibrium and Michelangelo Antonioni's The Dangerous Thread of Things.-Releases:... |
Nick Penrose | segment "Equilibrium" |
| 2005 | Game 6 Game 6 (film) Game 6 is a 2005 American film directed by Michael Hoffman, first presented at the Sundance Film Festival in 2005 and released in the United States in 2006... |
Steven Schwimmer | |
| 2005 | documentary | ||
| 2005 | Kiss Kiss Bang Bang Kiss Kiss Bang Bang Kiss Kiss Bang Bang is a 2005 crime/dark comedy film, which engages many conventions of the classic film noir genre in a tongue-in-cheek fashion. It is based, in part, on the novel Bodies Are Where You Find Them by Brett Halliday. The cast includes Robert Downey, Jr., Val Kilmer, Michelle Monaghan... |
Harry Lockhart | Produced by Susan Downey Susan Downey Susan Nicole Downey is an American film producer. Until February 2009 she was Co-President of Dark Castle Entertainment and Executive Vice President of Production at Silver Pictures, Joel Silver's production company, but has since stepped down to work more closely with her husband, actor Robert... Cameo by Indio Falconer Downey Nominated—Satellite Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy Nominated—Satellite Award for Best Original Song Satellite Award for Best Original Song The Satellite Award for Best Original Song is an annual award given by the International Press Academy.- 1990s :*1996: "You Must Love Me" performed by Madonna - Evita**"God Give Me Strength" - Grace of My Heart**"Kissing You" - Romeo + Juliet... Nominated—Saturn Award for Best Actor Saturn Award for Best Actor The Saturn Award is an award presented annually by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films to honor the top works in science fiction, fantasy, and horror in film, television, and home video. The Saturn Awards were devised by Dr. Donald A. Reed, who felt that films within those genres... |
| 2005 | Good Night, and Good Luck. | Joseph Wershba Joseph Wershba Joseph Wershba was a professional journalist who joined the CBS News team in 1944, where he served as a writer, editor and correspondent. He was one of the six original producers of CBS's 60 Minutes from 1968-88.... |
Nominated—Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Cast Nominated—Gotham Award for Best Ensemble Cast Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture Nominated—WFCA Award for Best Cast Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association The Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association is a group of film critics based out of Washington, D.C., United States that was founded in 2003. WAFCA is composed of 34 DC-based film critics from television, radio, print and the internet... |
| 2005 | Hubert Selby Jr: It/ll Be Better Tomorrow Hubert Selby Jr: It/ll Be Better Tomorrow Hubert Selby Jr: It/ll Be Better Tomorrow is a 2005 documentary film about writer Hubert Selby, Jr. , the author of the novels Last Exit to Brooklyn, The Room, The Demon, Requiem for a Dream, The Willow Tree, and Waiting Period and a book of short stories, Song of the Silent Snow. The movie's title... |
Narrator | Documentary |
| 2006 | Dr. Kozak | ||
| 2006 | James Barris | Nominated—Chlotrudis Award for Best Supporting Actor Chlotrudis Award for Best Supporting Actor The Chlotrudis Award for Best Supporting Actor is an award given by the Chlotrudis Society for Independent Film to the actor or actors whose winning performance is voted by participating members. The Chlotrudis Awards is an annual ceremony where the best of the previous year's independent and... |
|
| 2006 | Dito Montiel Dito Montiel Dito Montiel, born as Orlandito Montiel, is an American author, screenwriter, director and musician.Born in New York City, he came into the public eye after the breakup of his hardcore punk band Major Conflict... |
co-produced by Downey Sundance Film Festival Special Jury Prize – Dramatic Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival is a film festival that takes place annually in Utah, in the United States. It is the largest independent cinema festival in the United States. Held in January in Park City, Salt Lake City, and Ogden, as well as at the Sundance Resort, the festival is a showcase for new... |
|
| 2006 | Fur: An Imaginary Portrait of Diane Arbus Fur (film) Fur: An Imaginary Portrait of Diane Arbus is a 2006 film starring Nicole Kidman as iconic American photographer Diane Arbus, who was known for her strange, disturbing images.-Plot synopsis:... |
Lionel Sweeney | |
| 2007 | Zodiac Zodiac (film) Zodiac is a 2007 American mystery-thriller film directed by David Fincher and based on Robert Graysmith's non-fiction book of the same name. The Paramount Pictures and Warner Bros... |
Paul Avery Paul Avery Paul Avery was an American police reporter, best known for his stories on the infamous serial killer known as the Zodiac, and later for his work on the Patricia Hearst kidnapping.-Career:... |
|
| 2007 | Lucky You Lucky You (film) Lucky You is a 2007 drama directed by Curtis Hanson and starring Eric Bana, Drew Barrymore, and Robert Duvall. The film was shot on location in Las Vegas... |
Telephone Jack | Cameo |
| 2008 | Charlie Bartlett Charlie Bartlett Charlie Bartlett is a 2008 comedy-drama film directed by Jon Poll. The screenplay by Gustin Nash focuses on a teenager who begins to dispense therapeutic advice and prescription drugs to the student body at his new high school in order to become popular.... |
Principal Nathan Gardner | |
| 2008 | Iron Man Iron Man (film) Iron Man is a 2008 American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name. Directed by Jon Favreau, the film stars Robert Downey, Jr. as Tony Stark, an industrialist and master engineer who builds a powered exoskeleton and becomes the technologically advanced superhero, Iron... |
Tony Stark/Iron Man Iron Man Iron Man is a fictional character, a superhero in the . The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee, developed by scripter Larry Lieber, and designed by artists Don Heck and Jack Kirby, first appearing in Tales of Suspense #39 .A billionaire playboy, industrialist and ingenious engineer,... |
Irish Film & Television Award for Best International Actor The 6th Annual Irish Film & Television Awards 2009 The 6th Irish Film and Television Awards took place on 14 February 2009 at the Burlington Hotel in Dublin, and was hosted by Ryan Tubridy.-Awards in Film:Film* Hunger ** 32A** A Film with Me in It** The Escapist... Central Ohio Film Critics Association Award for Actor of the Year Ohio Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus... (also for Tropic Thunder Tropic Thunder Tropic Thunder is a 2008 American action satire comedy film written, produced, and directed by Ben Stiller, and starring Stiller, Robert Downey, Jr., and Jack Black. The main plot revolves around a group of prima donna actors who are making a Vietnam War film... ) Saturn Award for Best Actor Saturn Award for Best Actor The Saturn Award is an award presented annually by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films to honor the top works in science fiction, fantasy, and horror in film, television, and home video. The Saturn Awards were devised by Dr. Donald A. Reed, who felt that films within those genres... Nominated—Empire Award for Best Actor Nominated—National Movie Award for Best Actor National Movie Awards The National Movie Awards is a British movie awards ceremony broadcast by ITV in which the winners of the awards are chosen via popular vote. The awards were initiated in 2007 following the success of the National Television Awards, the highest-rating awards ceremony for television... Nominated—People's Choice Award for Favorite Superhero Nominated—Teen Choice Award for Choice Movie Actor: Action Adventure Teen Choice Awards The Teen Choice Awards, are an annual awards show that air on the Fox cable channel, that honor the year's biggest biggest achievements in music, movies, sports, television, fashion and more, voted by teen viewers aged 14 through 17. Winners receive an authentic full size surfboard designed with... |
| 2008 | Tony Stark Iron Man Iron Man is a fictional character, a superhero in the . The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee, developed by scripter Larry Lieber, and designed by artists Don Heck and Jack Kirby, first appearing in Tales of Suspense #39 .A billionaire playboy, industrialist and ingenious engineer,... |
cameo Nominated—IGN Award IGN IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment... for Best Cameo |
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| 2008 | Tropic Thunder Tropic Thunder Tropic Thunder is a 2008 American action satire comedy film written, produced, and directed by Ben Stiller, and starring Stiller, Robert Downey, Jr., and Jack Black. The main plot revolves around a group of prima donna actors who are making a Vietnam War film... |
Kirk Lazarus/Sgt. Lincoln Osiris | Boston Society of Film Critics Award for Best Ensemble Cast Boston Society of Film Critics The Boston Society of Film Critics is an organization of film reviewers from Boston, Massachusetts, United States, based publications.The BSFC was formed in 1981 to make "Boston's unique critical perspective heard on a national and international level by awarding commendations to the best of the... Central Ohio Film Critics Association Award for Actor of the Year Ohio Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus... (also for Iron Man Iron Man (film) Iron Man is a 2008 American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name. Directed by Jon Favreau, the film stars Robert Downey, Jr. as Tony Stark, an industrialist and master engineer who builds a powered exoskeleton and becomes the technologically advanced superhero, Iron... ) Nominated—Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry. Since its inception, however, the... Nominated—BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role Best Actor in a Supporting Role is a British Academy Film award presented annually by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding supporting performance in a film... Nominated—Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor Nominated—Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor The Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor is an annual award given by the Chicago Film Critics Association.-1980s:-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:-References:... Nominated—Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor The Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor is an award given by the Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association to honor the best achievements in filmmaking.-2000s:-2010s:-References:... Nominated—Detroit Film Critics Society Award for Best Supporting Actor Detroit Film Critics Society The Detroit Film Critics Society is a film critic organization in Detroit, Michigan, United States.-2007 Awards:The nominees for the Detroit Film Critics Society Awards 2007 were announced on 15 December and the winners were announced on 21 December 2007.-Best Actor:**George Clooney - Michael... Nominated—Houston Film Critics Society Award for Best Supporting Actor Houston Film Critics Society Awards 2008 The 2nd Houston Film Critics Society Awards were given out at a ceremony held at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston on December 17, 2008. The awards are presented annually by the Houston Film Critics Society based in Houston, Texas.-Winners and nominees:... Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor - Motion Picture Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor - Motion Picture The Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture was first awarded by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association in 1944 for a performance in a motion picture released in the previous year.... Nominated—Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Supporting Actor Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Supporting Actor The Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Supporting Actor is an annual film award given by the Online Film Critics Society to honor the best supporting actor of the year.-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:... Nominated—Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role - Motion Picture |
| 2009 | Steve Lopez Steve Lopez Steven M. Lopez is an American journalist who has been a columnist for The Los Angeles Times since 2001. He is the son of Spanish and Italian immigrants.-Life and cars:... |
Nominated—Prism Award for Best Performance in Feature Film | |
| 2009 | Sherlock Holmes Sherlock Holmes (2009 film) Sherlock Holmes is a 2009 action-mystery film based on the character of the same name created by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The film was directed by Guy Ritchie and produced by Joel Silver, Lionel Wigram, Susan Downey and Dan Lin. The screenplay by Michael Robert Johnson, Anthony Peckham and Simon... |
Sherlock Holmes Sherlock Holmes Sherlock Holmes is a fictional detective created by Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The fantastic London-based "consulting detective", Holmes is famous for his astute logical reasoning, his ability to take almost any disguise, and his use of forensic science skills to solve... |
Produced by Susan Downey Susan Downey Susan Nicole Downey is an American film producer. Until February 2009 she was Co-President of Dark Castle Entertainment and Executive Vice President of Production at Silver Pictures, Joel Silver's production company, but has since stepped down to work more closely with her husband, actor Robert... Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy Irish Film & Television Award for Best International Actor 7th Irish Film and Television Awards The 7th Irish Film and Television Awards took place on 20 February 2010 in the Burlington Hotel, Dublin.It was hosted by Victoria Smurfit.-Awards in film:Best Film* The Eclipse ** Ondine** The Secret of Kells** Zonad... Nominated—Empire Award for Best Actor Nominated—MTV Movie Award for Best Fight MTV Movie Award for Best Fight The MTV Movie Award for Best Fight is an award presented to actors and characters for quality fight scenes in films at the MTV Movie Awards, a ceremony established in 1992. Honors in several categories are awarded by MTV at the annual ceremonies, and are chosen by public vote... (Shared with Mark Strong Mark Strong Mark Strong is an English actor, with a body of work in both films and television. He has performed in films as varied as Body of Lies, Syriana, The Young Victoria, Sherlock Holmes, RocknRolla, Stardust, and Kick-Ass... ) Nominated—Saturn Award for Best Actor 36th Saturn Awards The 36th Saturn Awards, honoring the best in science fiction, fantasy and horror film and television in 2009 were presented on June 24, 2010, in Burbank, California. The most awards of the night were won by Avatar, winning all ten of its nominations... Nominated—Teen Choice Award for Best Action Adventure Actor 2010 Teen Choice Awards 2010 Teen Choice Awards were held on August 8, introducing a lot of new categories now separated into "Movie", "TV", "Music", "Summer", "Fashion" and "Other". The show aired on August 9, 2010 on Fox, co-hosted by Katy Perry, who also performed, and Cory Monteith, Chris Colfer, Kevin McHale, and... |
| 2010 | Iron Man 2 Iron Man 2 Iron Man 2 is a 2010 American superhero film featuring the Marvel Comics character Iron Man, produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Paramount Pictures. It is the sequel to 2008's Iron Man, the second film in a planned trilogy and is a part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Directed by Jon... |
Tony Stark/Iron Man Iron Man Iron Man is a fictional character, a superhero in the . The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee, developed by scripter Larry Lieber, and designed by artists Don Heck and Jack Kirby, first appearing in Tales of Suspense #39 .A billionaire playboy, industrialist and ingenious engineer,... |
Co-writer Executive Producer Susan Downey Susan Downey Susan Nicole Downey is an American film producer. Until February 2009 she was Co-President of Dark Castle Entertainment and Executive Vice President of Production at Silver Pictures, Joel Silver's production company, but has since stepped down to work more closely with her husband, actor Robert... Spike Guy's Choice Award for Deadliest Warrior Spike Guys' Choice Awards The Spike Guys' Choice Awards is an awards show produced by the Viacom cable channel Spike and held since 2007. It is patterned after Viacom's MTV Movie Awards... Nominated—People's Choice Award – Favorite Action Star 37th People's Choice Awards The 37th People's Choice Awards, honoring the best in popular culture for 2010, were held on January 5, 2011 at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles, California, and were broadcast live on CBS at 9:00 pm ET... Nominated—People's Choice Award – Favorite Movie Actor 37th People's Choice Awards The 37th People's Choice Awards, honoring the best in popular culture for 2010, were held on January 5, 2011 at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles, California, and were broadcast live on CBS at 9:00 pm ET... Nominated—People's Choice Award – Favorite On-Screen Team 37th People's Choice Awards The 37th People's Choice Awards, honoring the best in popular culture for 2010, were held on January 5, 2011 at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles, California, and were broadcast live on CBS at 9:00 pm ET... (Shared with Don Cheadle Don Cheadle Donald Frank "Don" Cheadle, Jr. is an American film actor and producer. Cheadle rose to prominence in the late 1990s and the early 2000s for his supporting roles in the Steven Soderbergh-directed films Out of Sight, Traffic, and Ocean's Eleven... ) Nominated—Kids' Choice Award – Favorite Buttkicker Nominated—Teen Choice Award for Choice Movie Dance 2010 Teen Choice Awards 2010 Teen Choice Awards were held on August 8, introducing a lot of new categories now separated into "Movie", "TV", "Music", "Summer", "Fashion" and "Other". The show aired on August 9, 2010 on Fox, co-hosted by Katy Perry, who also performed, and Cory Monteith, Chris Colfer, Kevin McHale, and... |
| 2010 | Due Date Due Date Due Date is a 2010 American comedy road film directed by Todd Phillips, co-written by Alan R. Cohen, Alan Freedland, and Adam Sztykiel, and starring Robert Downey, Jr. and Zach Galifianakis. The film was released on November 5, 2010... |
Peter Highman | Executive Producer Susan Downey Susan Downey Susan Nicole Downey is an American film producer. Until February 2009 she was Co-President of Dark Castle Entertainment and Executive Vice President of Production at Silver Pictures, Joel Silver's production company, but has since stepped down to work more closely with her husband, actor Robert... Nominated—Teen Choice Award for Choice Movie Hissy Fit 2011 Teen Choice Awards The 2011 Teen Choice Awards hosted by Kaley Cuoco aired live on August 7, 2011 at 8/7c on Fox. This was the first time that the ceremonies were aired live since the 2007 show... |
| 2011 | Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows is an upcoming 2011 British-American action mystery film directed by Guy Ritchie and produced by Joel Silver, Lionel Wigram, Susan Downey, and Dan Lin. It is a sequel to the 2009 film Sherlock Holmes, based on the character of the same name created by Sir Arthur... |
Sherlock Holmes | Produced by Susan Downey Susan Downey Susan Nicole Downey is an American film producer. Until February 2009 she was Co-President of Dark Castle Entertainment and Executive Vice President of Production at Silver Pictures, Joel Silver's production company, but has since stepped down to work more closely with her husband, actor Robert... ; Post-production |
| 2012 | The Avengers | Tony Stark/Iron Man Iron Man Iron Man is a fictional character, a superhero in the . The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee, developed by scripter Larry Lieber, and designed by artists Don Heck and Jack Kirby, first appearing in Tales of Suspense #39 .A billionaire playboy, industrialist and ingenious engineer,... |
Post-production |
| 2013 | Iron Man 3 | Tony Stark/Iron Man Iron Man Iron Man is a fictional character, a superhero in the . The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee, developed by scripter Larry Lieber, and designed by artists Don Heck and Jack Kirby, first appearing in Tales of Suspense #39 .A billionaire playboy, industrialist and ingenious engineer,... |
Pre-production |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1985– 1986 |
Saturday Night Live Saturday Night Live Saturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture... |
Cast member | 18 episodes |
| 1995 | Mr. Willowby's Christmas Tree Mr. Willowby's Christmas Tree Mr. Willowby’s Christmas Tree is a television Christmas special that first aired in 1995. The special stars Robert Downey, Jr., Leslie Nielsen, and Stockard Channing. It also features Kermit the Frog as a narrator and various other Muppets created exclusively for the special.The special was based... |
Mr. Willowby | television film |
| 2000–2002 | Ally McBeal Ally McBeal Ally McBeal is an American legal comedy-drama series which aired on the Fox network from 1997 to 2002. The series was created by David E. Kelley, who also served as the executive producer, along with Bill D'Elia... |
Larry Paul | 15 episodes Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series Nominated—American Comedy Award for Funniest Supporting Male Performer in a TV Series Nominated—Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor – Comedy Series Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series Nominated—TV Guide Award for Best Supporting Actor TV Guide TV Guide is a weekly American magazine with listings of TV shows.In addition to TV listings, the publication features television-related news, celebrity interviews, gossip and film reviews and crossword puzzles... Nominated—Television Critics Association Award for Individual Achievement in Comedy Television Critics Association The Television Critics Association is a group of approximately 200 United States and Canadian journalists and columnists who cover television programming... |
| 2005 | Family Guy Family Guy Family Guy is an American animated television series created by Seth MacFarlane for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series centers on the Griffins, a dysfunctional family consisting of parents Peter and Lois; their children Meg, Chris, and Stewie; and their anthropomorphic pet dog Brian... |
Patrick Pewterschmidt | voice, episode "The Fat Guy Strangler The Fat Guy Strangler "The Fat Guy Strangler" is the seventeenth episode of season four of Family Guy, which originally aired on November 27, 2005. Lois discovers she has a long-lost brother, Patrick... " |
| 2012 | Transformers: Darkness Rising | Lockdown Lockdown (Transformers) Lockdown is the name of multiple fictional characters in the various Transformers universes; all of which are Decepticons who transform into muscle cars.-Transformers Animated:... |
voice only |
External links
- Robert Downey, Jr. Interview: The Game's Afoot at Los Angeles Times Magazine
- Official site for "The Futurist" album
- Robert Downey Jr interview at www.reviewgraveyard.com