Five Interesting Facts About Robert Downey Jr.
5. Robert Downey Jr. Was Trained In Classical Ballet
As a child, he was enrolled to study classical ballet at the highly-reputable Perry House School, located in Chelsea, London. Downey was once quoted as saying, "I don't want to say I did anything correctly at Perry House because the truth is that I spent my whole time there with my nose in the corner, being a moron.” Downey would later go on to enroll at the Stagedoor Manor Performing Arts Training Center before fully transitioning to an acting career. It is perhaps fortunate that Downey did not further pursue a career in professional ballet performance. However, as many of Downey’s film appearances can jointly attest, neither his seamless energy nor his love for dance has abandoned him over the years.
4. He Has An Interesting Bond With Burger King
Robert Downey Jr.’s extensive history of substance abuse has forever been an open secret in Hollywood. The actor himself would later go on to talk frankly about the ongoing personal struggles of overcoming his issues with the addiction. However, the final push came from the unlikeliest of sources, as he pointed out in a 2008 interview with New York Daily News:
“I have to thank Burger King. It was such a disgusting burger I ordered. I had that, and this big soda, and I thought something really bad was going to happen.”
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Burger King would be one of the most prominent advertising partners behind RDJ’s 2008’s Iron Man debut. Midway into the film, there is a scene where Tony Stark, having just returned to the United States after being held prisoner for months in a terrorist camp, refuses point-blank to go to the hospital, and instead demands two things: to hold a press conference, and before that, to get an American burger. He then appears in the next scene eating a Burger King burger.
3. Robert Downey Jr. Was Almost Refused The Role Of Sherlock Holmes For The 2009 Film
While Robert Downey Jr’s indisputably most famous role is as Tony Stark/Iron Man in the MCU, his starring role in Guy Ritchie’s brilliantly unorthodox reinvention of Arthur Conan Doyle’s literary character allowed the actor to more fully explore his dramatic and comedic talents outside of the constraints imposed by the more bombastic MCU films. Interestingly, even with the success of 2008 Iron Man injecting new life into his career, RDJ was on the verge of being turned down for the role of Sherlock Holmes. Warner Bros felt the actor was, at that point, too old to be considered a viable candidate for the role. However, with the backing of Guy Ritchie behind him, the process from there on out was elementary.
2. Robert Downey Jr. Often Insists On Doing His Own Stunts
Many action stars enjoy doing their own stunts from time to time, despite the risks involved, and RDJ is no exception. Guy Pearce, who starred opposite RDJ in Iron Man 3 as the film’s antagonist Aldrich Killian once said of him:
"Robert broke his ankle in the middle of that film, because he had to do a stunt where he jumped from one platform down to another platform and be on a cable. They wanted to rehearse it and he said, ‘I don’t need to rehearse it.’ And he jumped and the guy holding the cable wasn’t sort of ready or something and he landed hard and he broke his ankle. So the film sort of shut down for like 5 or 6 weeks."
Sometimes, when making a film, certain delays are unavoidable. However, breaking for a month and a half because your main star and stunt coordinator didn’t coordinate very well probably is something to be avoided during the filming process.
1. His Paycheck For Iron Man Wasn’t As High As You May Think
RDJ’s income has steadily grown in the years to the point where many people often forget that, during his initial resurgence with Iron Man back in 2008, he was paid less than a million dollars for his starring role. Specifically, he was paid $500,000. However, this would quickly change with the subsequent release of Iron Man 2 in 2010, for which he earned a total of over $10 million. Over the following years, this amount would continue to grow, owing in large part due to the fact that RDJ’s contract granted him a locked 8% percentage point of the films’ total gross. This would culminate with RDJ pulling in a grand total of over $50 million from his role in Avengers: Endgame, combining his $20 million salary with his ongoing gross percentage earnings.
Whether you love or hate RDJ’s performance as Tony Stark/Iron Man and his other recent hit roles, there is no denying that he has already beaten the odds and carved out a new life for himself, both as an actor, and more importantly, as an individual.
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Source(s): New York Daily News, The Guardian, Encyclopedia.com, Britannica, IMDb