Robert Downey Jr.’s latest accomplishment is likely going to be one of his most memorable as it represents just how far he has come.
If you grew up watching Robert Downey Jr. in the mid to late Noughties, you would be forgiven for thinking he’d always been a global superstar actor.
He won the hearts of many in two of his most iconic roles as Tony Stark, A.K.A Iron Man and Sherlock Holmes, and who could forget his role in Tropic Thunder as a dude playing a dude disguised as another dude.
His acting career appeared to come to a crescendo in this year’s Academy awards ceremony, as he bagged his first Oscar for Best Supporting Actor, playing Lewis Stauss in Christopher Nolan’s biopic Oppenheimer.
Robert Downey Jr’s acceptance speech
Credit: ABC
However, Downey Jr. wasn’t always so successful.
For those aware of his work in the 80s and 90s, many had written the young actor off as a bad egg.
In the mid 90s to early 2000s, Downey was was arrested several times over charges relating to his drug use and addiction.
He had repeatedly gone through drug treatment programs for his addiction to cocaine, heroin and marijuana.
Despite winning one of the most coveted awards for an actor, Downey Jr wasn’t always so successful. Credit: Richard Harbaugh/A.M.P.A.S. via Getty Images
Downey also explained that he had been addicted to drugs since he was eight years old and had even done them with his father growing up.
After missing a required drug test in 1999, the actor was even sentenced to a three-year prison stint and things looked like they were all going downhill.
However, after spending nearly a year in the California Substance Abuse Treatment Facility and State, Downey was freed and seemed determined to getting his life back on track.
Robert Downey Jr’s acceptance speech
The actor did just that and went on to star in some of his best work yet, finally landing him with the most coveted acting award.
Many on social media remarked this as the ‘comeback of a lifetime’ and a testament to what can be achieved through perseverance.
Downey has been praised for his turnaround after having a life filled with drugs and crime. Credit: Rich Polk/Variety via Getty Images
During his acceptance speech, Downey even alluded to his troubled past and thanked those that believed in him anyway.
“I’d like to thank my terrible childhood and the Academy, in that order,” he joked.
He then added: “I’d like to thank my veterinarian — I meant wife — Susan Downey over there.
“She found me, a snarling rescue pet, and loved me back to life. That’s why I am here. Thank you.”
Topics: Celebrity, Robert Downey Jr, Oscars, Oppenheimer
Gerrard Kaonga
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Robert Downey Jr. wins his first ever Oscar as he’s awarded Best Supporting Actor
Gerrard Kaoga
Robert Downey Jr. was able to beat out some very stiff competition to go home with his first ever Oscar.
You can watch his acceptance speech below:
For anyone who hasn’t been living under a rock the past 20 years, you will likely have seen Robert Downey Jr. being a playboy, philanthropist and billionaire genius on our screens as Iron Man/Tony Stark.
However, following his death in Endgame (no spoiler alert because, well, it was five years ago), the actor has shown he is still able to produce captivating performances in other films.
Sure, he has had some duds… looking at you Dolittle, but the man has been dedicated to his craft for over 40 years and has finally won one of the most coveted awards.
Robert Downey Jr. was able to beat out some very stiff competition to go home with his first ever Oscar.Credit: FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images
Beating out Mark Ruffallo, Robert De Niro, Sterling K. Brown and Ryan Gosling, Downey Jr. was able to leave the Oscars with the Best Supporting Actor award for his work in Christopher Nolan’s intense biopic, Oppenheimer.
During his acceptance speech, Downey Jr. filled it with jokes and jibes and even poked fun at himself in true charismatic fashion.
Playing former Atomic Energy Commission chairman Lewis Strauss, Downey Jr. brought an intensity that matched Cillian Murphy’s Robert Oppenheimer, a very difficult job considering his track record for brilliant performances as a lead.
Talking about playing the role, Downey Jr has said he became obsessed with the character and it is no question this obsession played into how well he played Strauss.
Speaking to W Magazine, he said: “There have been three times in my career when I became completely obsessed with the possibility of playing a role.
“First time was Chaplin. Second time was Tony Stark, in Iron Man.
“And the third time – I got the trifecta, and you’re lucky if this happens a couple of times – was with Lewis Strauss, for Oppenheimer.
“I knew a little bit about my character because I’m kind of a Cold War enthusiast. I don’t know why I’ve been obsessed with it.
Robert Downey Jr. beat out stiff competition to win his first Oscars.PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty Images
“I think that, sadly, that period informs where we are nowadays in the world. I knew that Strauss was involved in the development of the proximity fuse and that he headed up the Atomic Energy Commission.
“I didn’t really know about [his] rivalry with Oppenheimer. But clearly, after 20 minutes into reading the script, I realized that [it] would be thematic.”
And that performance is one of the reasons why the film was so highly rated by both fans and critics.
The film maintains a score of 8.4/10 on IMDB and an even better Tomatoemeter score of 93 percent and audience score of 91 percent.
Here are all the winners so far:
Best supporting actress
Emily Blunt – Oppenheimer
Danielle Brooks – The Color Purple
America Ferrera – Barbie
Jodie Foster – Nyad
Da’Vine Joy Randolph – The Holdovers – WINNER
Best animated short
Letter to a Pig
Ninety-Five Senses
Our Uniform
Pachyderme
War Is Over! Inspired by the Music of John & Yoko – WINNER
Best animated feature
The Boy and the Heron – WINNER
Elemental
Nimona
Robot Dreams
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
Best original screenplay
Anatomy of a Fall – WINNER
The Holdovers
Maestro
May December
Past Lives
Best adapted screenplay
American Fiction – WINNER
Barbie
Oppenheimer
Poor Things
The Zone of Interest
Best make-up and hairstyling
Golda
Maestro
Oppenheimer
Poor Things – WINNER
Society of the Snow
Best production design
Barbie
Killers of the Flower Moon
Napoleon
Oppenheimer
Poor Things – WINNER
Best costume design
Barbie
Killers of the Flower Moon
Napoleon
Oppenheimer
Poor Things – WINNER
Best international feature
Io Capitano
Perfect Days
Society of the Snow
The Teachers’ Lounge
The Zone of Interest – WINNER
Best supporting actor
Sterling K Brown – American Fiction
Robert De Niro – Killers of the Flower Moon
Robert Downey Jr – Oppenheimer – WINNER
Ryan Gosling – Barbie
Mark Ruffalo – Poor Things
Best visual effects
The Creator
Godzilla Minus One – WINNER
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One
Napoleon
Best film editing
Anatomy of a Fall
The Holdovers
Killers of the Flower Moon
Oppenheimer
Poor Things
Best documentary short
The ABCs of Book Banning
The Barber of Little Rock
Island In Between
The Last Repair Shop
Nǎi Nai and Wài Pó
Best documentary feature
Bobi Wine: The People’s President
The Eternal Memory
Four Daughters
To Kill a Tiger
20 Days in Mariupol
Best live action short
The After
Invincible
Knight of Fortune
Red, White and Blue
The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar
Best cinematography
El Conde
Killers of the Flower Moon
Maestro
Oppenheimer
Poor Things
Best sound
The Creator
Maestro
Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One
Oppenheimer
The Zone of Interest
Best original score
American Fiction
Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny
Killers of the Flower Moon
Oppenheimer
Poor Things
Best original song
‘The Fire Inside’ – Flamin’ Hot (Diane Warren)
‘I’m Just Ken’ – Barbie (Mark Ronson, Andrew Wyatt)
‘It Never Went Away’ – American Symphony (Jon Batiste, Dan Wilson)
‘Wahzhazhe (A Song For My People)’ – Killers of the Flower Moon (Scott George)
‘What Was I Made For?’ – Barbie (Billie Eilish, Finneas O’Connell)
Best director
Anatomy of a Fall – Justine Triet
Killers of the Flower Moon – Martin Scorsese
Oppenheimer – Christopher Nolan
Poor Things – Yorgos Lanthimos
The Zone of Interest – Jonathan Glazer
Best actor
Bradley Cooper – Maestro
Colman Domingo – Rustin
Paul Giamatti – The Holdovers
Cillian Murphy – Oppenheimer
Jeffrey Wright – American Fiction
Best actress
Annette Bening – Nyad
Lily Gladstone – Killers of the Flower Moon
Sandra Huller – Anatomy of a Fall
Carey Mulligan – Maestro
Emma Stone – Poor Things
Best picture
American Fiction
Anatomy of a Fall
Barbie
The Holdovers
Killers of the Flower Moon
Maestro
Oppenheimer
Past Lives
Poor Things
