But being the son of a popular director it was not much of a problem for Robert to get a chance. But it was not only his father who helped him to get a role but his great acting skills played a major part in starting his career. But for his addictions and way to disobey law he was sometimes under arrest for the same. He also went to rehab and was in and out of the prison. But it was his acting skills with which he earned his reputation and the position he holds today In most of his movies, he drew the role of gloomy and fearless characters. He did several movies namely Sherlock Holmes, Tropical Thunder, and much more. It is considered that like his movies he is also a superhero in real life who can leave behind his addiction to drugs and other addictions. With his awesome acting skills, he also earned many awards such as the Golden Globe, BAFTA, and the Emmy awards. Not only is his success limited to being an actor but he also owns one of the best production companies which is the Team Downey. He owns the company with his wife named Susan Levin. With being one of the most versatile actors and as well as the owner of one of the most popular production companies he has a net worth is estimated to be somewhere around $300 million.
Early Life
Born on the 4th of April 1965 was none other than very popular and everyone’s favorite Robert Downey Jr. He was born in the beautiful city of Manhattan in New York. His father was none other than very popular Robert Downey Sr. who was one of the most famous filmmakers in his times. His mother was Elsie who was one of the most famous actresses during her time. Robert got his first television role at an early age. His first movie as a child actor was the movie named Pound. In that movie, he played the role of a puppy. But as he grew up he saw his father who has had an addiction to drugs. Gradually he also became a drug addict. At the tender age of 6, he started to consume the drug named marijuana. Even at an early age his acting never failed to impress the audience. When he turned 7 he got another role in a movie named Grasser’s Palace. The movie was later used in England to study classical ballet. He got enrolled in one of the famous arts Training centers in the State of New York which was the Stagedoor Manor Performing Arts Training Center. But he saw his parents getting legally separated when he was 13. After that his father that is Robert Downey Sr. got his custody. They moved to California. He started his schooling there. Shortly he dropped out of school wishing to follow what he loves to do that is acting. But even then he was struggling for being a drug addict
Career
The beginning of his successful career happened in 1983. For around 3years he did some off-Broadway musical shows namely American Passion which was broadcasted in the year 1983. he was also part of the cast of another show named Saturday Night Live which was premiered in 1985. Other than these he also did many more shows in those 3years namely Turf Turf which was released in 1985 and Pretty in Pink which was released in 1986. He was also a part of a science-fiction comedy show directed by John Hughes named Weird Science. It was released in 1985. With a few side roles at the starting of his career, he got his first major role in 1987. He did back-to-back two movies in the same year having lead roles in both the movies namely The Pick-up Artist and Less Than Zero. Later he played the role of a wealthy young boy who was addicted to drugs. Gradually he got the recognition of the member of a group named Brat Pack. Other than the serious roles he did another movie in 1989 portraying a major character in a movie named Chances Are. In that movie, he had Ryan O’Neal, Cybill Shepherd, and Mary Stuart Masterson as his co-stars. In the following year, he did another movie with having the lead role in that as well. The movie was Air America, which was released in 1990. In that movie, he had none other than very popular Mel Gibson as his co-star. He also played a lead role in the movie named Soapdish which was released in 1991. He portrayed his role with his co-star Sally Field. With some lead and some supporting roles, Robert’s acting caught the eye of other filmmakers. He got the role that brought him to the limelight and help him to rise to stardom. The role in Richard Attenborough’s famous movie named Chaplin was released in 1992. In that movie, he played the role of the lead that is of Charlie Chaplin. Not only did his role helped him rises to stardom but also helped him to rise to stardom but also earned him the nomination of one of the most prestigious awards that are the Oscar nomination. He also won the BAFTA award for the movie. But this was just a start to the more successful career that he was going to have. With the roles he did earlier from 1993 he started to appear in commercial movies namely Heart and Souls which was released in 1995. Other than that he also did other movies named Shortcuts premiered in 1993, Only you released in 1994, Natural Born Killer released in 1994. He also played major roles in the movies named Restoration which was released in 1995, Richard III premiered in 1995, Two Girls a Guy in 1998, and Black and White in 1999. In the same year, he also did another psychological thriller movie named In Dreams. In that movie, he played the role of the character named Vivian Thompson. He had Annette Bening as his co-star. But as fate may happen after that movie he was arrested for having drug charges. He was also sent to a treatment facility in California named the California Substance Abuse Treatment Facility. In the following year, after being released from prison he appeared in the cast of one Television series named Ally McBeal. It was a Legal comedy-drama in America. He did his roles so efficiently that he earned the nomination for the Emmy Awards. He also won the Golden Globe Awards under the list of being the Best Supporting Actor in a mini-series. Not only was he a good actor but was also a lip-synching artist. He lip-synched the role of Elton John in one of the most famous videos directed by Sam Taylor-Wood. The video was named I want Love. It was released in 2001. In the following year, he appeared in another lead role in a movie named The singing Detective. With the pay, he got from the movie he with the help of his co-star who was Mel Gibson paid back his insurance bond. He also played a role in one of the most popular supernatural thriller movies named Gothika. In that movie, he had Halle Berry as his co-star. The movie was directed by none other than the very popular Mathieu Kassovitz. At the time of the payment, the director delayed in giving the full payment to Downey. Kassovitz withheld around 40%of the total payment to ensure that Downey’s addiction to drugs does not hamper his movie. After his other leadership roles, he also played many supporting roles in the movies named Good Night, and Good Luck. The movie was directed by none other than George Clooney. He also did other ventures namely Fur, An imaginary Portrait of Diane Arbus, A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints, and Scanner Darkly. He did all these ventures throughout a year that is 2005-2006. At the same time, he did many other commercial movies as well namely Kiss Kiss Bang Bang which was released in 2005. The movie was based on a crime comedy. He played his part with Val Kilmer as his co-star. He also did other movies namely The Shaggy Dog which was premiered in 2006 and The Zodiac which was released in 2007. His roles in commercial movies made his position in the Hollywood industry more strong. With all his roles and movies he appeared in the first blockbuster of his career that was the Tropic Thunder. It was based on the genre of action-comedy. In this movie, he played his role with the very popular Ben Stiller and Justin Theroux as his co-stars. He also played a role in another blockbuster that is Iron Man. In that movie, he very efficiently portrayed the role of the character named Tony Stark. Other than these movies he also appeared in a drama movie named The Soloist which was released in 2009. In that movie, he played the role of a major character with Jamie Fox as his co-star. The movie was an adaptation of the book written by the famous novelist named Steve Lopez. In the meantime, he also played a major role in one of the most famous mystery movies named Sherlock Holmes. It was not a completely American movie but was British-American action as well as a mystery movie. With his previous role and his role in the first installation of the superhero series. In 2010 he again drew the role of Tony Stark in the second installation of the superhero series named Iron Man 2. With that, he became part of the famous studio that is the Marvel Studio Film Project. The movie was premiered worldwide that in a total of 54 countries. It also made a huge box-office amount of $623.9million. He also played his role in the other installation of Sherlock Holmes. The series was named Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows which was released in 2011. played his part with Jude Laws and Jarred Harris as his co-stars. The movie had one of the best cast in the Hollywood industry but for some reason or other, the movie did not make a great box-office success. In the following year that is in 2012, he played his part as Tony Stark in a movie with all the Marvel Comics superheroes named The Avengers. He played his role with very popular stars namely Samuel L. Jackson and Scarlett Johansson. He also played the role of a superhero in another cast of the Iron Man series named Iron Man 3. This part of the movie was released in 2013. In this series, he played the role of portraying the person as he was going through his posttraumatic stress disorder. The movie had a top-notch cast with Robert Downey Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow as well as Rebecca Hall, and others as well.
Rising with roles
The movie that he did in 1992 is Chaplin was the one that bought him to the limelight of the Hollywood industry. To date, that movie is one of his biggest achievements. The director of the movie that is Richard Attenborough made Downey capable of the movie from every aspect that is Attenborough got him trained. For instance, the character learned how to play the violin. After his first blockbuster movie, he got an opportunity to be a part of one of the most popular mini television series named Ally McBeal. But before being a part of the movie he was arrested for having drug charges in 2000. He served the prison for a year or so. For his role in the mini-series, he earned a lot of respect as well as many awards for the same. With that, he did many leads as well as supporting roles but got another famous role in the movie named Iron Man which was released in 2008. He played the character of Tony Stark not only in the first series but also in all other installations of the movie. He was also a part of the combined superhero movie from the Marvel Comics series named The Avengers. He also appeared in the other installation of the same.
Personal Life
Back in the starting days of Downey’s career, he got married to a beautiful actress in the Hollywood Industry named Deborah Falconer. They got married in 1992. Within a few years, they became parents of a baby boy named Indio Falconer Downey. But even after their marriage Downey was a drug addict and was forced to go the rehab very often, which had a very negative effect on his wife as well as on his son. For that reason, they both got legally separated in 2004. He was also arrested quite often for having charges which were related to drugs. He was arrested repeatedly from 1996-2001. For an instance, he was once arrested on the charges of having marijuana and heroin. Other than being arrested for drug charges he was also arrested for having a handgun without a license. After being in and out of the prison for different charges he was sent to a treatment facility which was in California was named California Substance Abuse Treatment Facility and State Prison. There he got a sentence of 3years which was in 1999. But as his time in prison for various occasions was reduced, he was released early than his sentenced period. After being sober he got married to Susan Levin, who by profession was a Vice President of the Production Department in one of the most famous film companies of Joel Silver named Silver Pictures. After a few years of their marriage, the couple became the parent of a baby boy whom they named Exton Elias Downey.
Awards
Downey with his extravagant acting skills never failed to impress anyone. He holds the winner position of the Golden Globe Awards as well as for Screen Guild Awards for the movie named Ally McBeal which was released in 2001. He received the nominations for the most prestigious awards to date that is Oscar for one of his biggest hits to date is the movie named Chaplin which was released in 1992. He also won the BAFTA awards for the same. Other than that he holds the winner position for the Golden Globe Awards for the movie named Shortcuts which was released in 1994. He also won the Golden Globe Awards for the movie named Sherlock Holmes which was premiered in 2009. For another of his blockbuster movies that are The Avengers which was premiered in around 54 countries in 2013, he won the People’s Choice Awards twice for the same. Read:
Interesting and Heartbreaking Facts About Robert Downey Jr. Robert Downey Jr’s Top 20 Movies You Must Watch
