Robert Downey Jr.

Robert Downey Jr.: Biography in Details

Who is Robert Downey Jr.?

Robert Downey Jr. is an American actor.

He is well known for his splendid acting in ‘Chaplin’, his quirky version of ‘Tony Stark’ in ‘Iron Man, and decades of living under the shadow of drug abuse and breaching of law.

Likely, Downey topped the Forbes list of Hollywood’s highest-paid actors, and in 2008, Time magazine named him one of the 100 most influential people in the world.

Robert Downey Jr: Age, Parents, Ethnicity

Robert Downey Jr. was born in New York City, New York, the United States on April 4, 1965. His birth name is Robert John Downey Jr. and he is currently, 57 years old.

His father’s name is Robert Downey Sr. (actor and filmmaker) and his mother’s name is Elsie Ann (actress).

Downey Jr. was introduced to acting at the age of five, showing up in his father’s film Pound (1970), Downey showed up in jobs related to the Brat Pack, for example, the teenager science fiction comedy Weird Science (1985) and the drama Less Than Zero (1987).

Downey Jr. was featured as the title character in the 1992 film Chaplin.

Whereas, when he was 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 said he now regrets.

Then, Robert Downey Jr. 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 show his love for me is the only way he knew how.”

In 1978, at 13 years old, Downey’s parents separated and he went to California to live with his father. He has a sibling namely, Allyson Downey.

Robert Downey Jr. holds American citizenship and mixed (Ashkenazi Jewish- English- Scottish- German-Swiss- Irish) ethnicity. His birth sign is Aries.

He attended Santa Monica High School but he dropped out of school and relocated to New York with his mother.

Robert Downey Jr. studied acting at Stagedoor Manor Performing Arts Training Center.

Robert Downey Jr.: Professional Life, Career

Talking about his profession, from 1983 to 1986, Downey did an off-Broadway musical ‘American Passion (1983)’ and was cast to be a part of ‘Saturday Night Live (1985)’.

Whereas, he also did ‘Turf Turf (1985)’, John Hughes’s sci-fi comedy ‘Weird Science (1985)’ and ‘Pretty in Pink (1986)’.

In 1989, Downey did a romantic comedy called ‘Chances Are, starring Cybill Shepherd, Ryan O’Neal, and Mary Stuart Masterson, in which he starred with Mel Gibson, and ‘Soapdish (1991) with Sally Field.

Additionally, Robert Downey Jr. played the most famous role of his lifetime in Richard Attenborough’s ‘Chaplin’ in 1992.

He also played the role of ‘Charlie Chaplin in the movie and prepared extensively for his role.

Likewise, from 1993 to 1999, he did commercial movies like: ‘Heart and Souls (1993)’, ‘Short Cuts (1993)’, ‘Only You (1994)’, ‘Natural Born Killers (1994)’, ‘Restoration (1995)’, ‘Richard III (1995)’, ‘Two Girls and a Guy (1998)’ and ‘Black and White (1999)’.

Besides that, Downey did a psychological thriller in 1999 called ‘In Dreams’, in which he starred with Annette Bening.

In 2000, after his release, he joined the cast of an American legal comedy-drama television series called ‘Ally McBeal’.

Eventually, Robert Downey Jr. lip-synched Elton John’s ‘I Want Love’ for its video in 2001, directed by Sam Taylor-Wood.

In the following year, he got the lead role in ‘The Singing Detective’ with the help of Mel Gibson who paid his insurance bond.

Similarly, in 2003, Downey did a supernatural thriller ‘Gothika’ along with Halle Berry, which was directed by Mathieu Kassovitz.

Besides that, he also did commercial movies that made him more prominent in the industry: ‘Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005), which was a crime comedy starring Val Kilmer.

Likewise, he also did ‘The Shaggy Dog (2006)’ and ‘The Zodiac (2007)’.

During 2008, Downey also gave his first major blockbuster hits like: ‘Tropic Thunder, an action-comedy in which he starred with Ben Stiller and Justin Theroux, and ‘Iron Man in which he also played the memorable and quirky role of ‘Tony Stark’.

Robert Downey Jr. appeared in a drama film called ‘The Soloist’ in 2009, starring Jamie Foxx, based on a book by Steve Lopez.

Robert Downey Jr. also did the British-American action mystery film, ‘Sherlock Holmes, around the same time.

In fact, after reviving his role as ‘Tony Stark’ in the sequel ‘Iron Man 2’ in 2010, Downey again became a part of the Marvel Studios film project.

Robert Downey Jr. starred along with Jude Law and Jarred Harris in the movie and despite its top-notch cast, the film did not do very well.

In 2012, ‘The Avengers’ a superhero film was released, which was based on the Marvel Comics superhero team of the same name.

Additionally, Downey starred in this massive project along with Samuel L. Jackson, Scarlett Johansson, etc.

Moreover, ‘Iron Man’s movie and ‘Iron Man’s 3’ was released in 2013 in which Downey’s character was shown to be going through posttraumatic stress disorder.

Therefore, Robert Downey Jr. starred in the movie along with Gwyneth Paltrow, Rebecca Hall, etc.

Awards, Nomination

Robert Downey Jr. won Golden Globe Awards for Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Comedy or Musical for  Sherlock Holmes (2009), Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Miniseries or Motion Picture Made for Television for Ally McBeal (1997).

Moreover, he received the honour of Best Actor for Iron Man Three (2013) at the Saturn Award, Best Actor for Iron Man (2008), and Best Actor for Heart and Souls (1993).

Robert Downey Jr.: Net Worth, Income, Salary

As of 2024, their net worth of Robert is around $300 million and his salary seems to increase year after year.

He made $500,000; however, this is mere pennies when compared to his later salaries.

Robert Downey Jr.: Rumors, Controversy/Scandal

There was a rumour that Robert hooked up with  Calista Flockhart, Winona Ryder, Farrah Fawcett, and Marisa Tomei. Currently, Robert Downey Jr. is far from rumours and controversies.

Body Measurements: Height, Weight

Moving towards his body measurements, he has a height of 5 feet 8 inches (1.74m) with a body weight of 78 kg. His chest size is 45, his waist size is 35, and biceps size is 15, and his shoe size is 9.

Robert Downey Jr. has brown hair color and his eye color is also brown.

Social Media

Being an American actor Robert Downey has a huge fan following rate. Robert Downey Jr. has been active on social sites like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

He has around 41M followers on his Facebook. Around 16.5M followers on his Twitter and he has around 50.8M followers on his Instagram.

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Robert Downey Jr.'s Birthday Dates