Why Hollywood Abandoned Robert Downey Jr

Robert Downey Jr. has done more than enough to cement his status as one of Hollywood's mightiest contemporary titans. From being arguably the most instrumental building block of the Marvel Cinematic Universe to stealing the show as Kirk Lazarus in "Tropic Thunder" and winning an Academy Award for his turn as Lewis Strauss in Christopher Nolan's "Oppenheimer," the actor has become such an established name that he can easily shrug off the occasional box office bomb like "Dolittle."

The thing is, it wasn't always like this. As longtime fans know, Downey's post-"Iron Man" success story is one of the most inspirational comebacks in the entertainment business. Today, the very idea of a performer with such undeniable talent and gravitas losing the spotlight may seem unbelievable, but Downey's decades in the business nevertheless featured a lengthy spell of comparative obscurity. Let's take a look at what caused Hollywood to abandon the actor after he first made a name for himself.

There's no denying that Robert Downey Jr.'s true life story is tragic. His father — actor and filmmaker Robert Downey Sr. – introduced him to narcotic substances at an early age, and the young actor's struggle with addiction eventually impacted his career. While he had already used drugs and alcohol before his breakthrough role in 1987's "Less Than Zero," Downey personally attributes his downward spiral to acting in this drug-heavy film.

"Until that movie, I took my drugs after work and on the weekends. Maybe I'd turn up hungover on the set, but no more so than the stuntman. That changed on 'Less Than Zero,'" Downey told The Guardian in 2003, describing the experience of filming the movie. "[My] character was an exaggeration of myself. Then things changed and, in some ways, I became an exaggeration of the character. That lasted far longer than it needed to last."

Downey's addiction issues led to a slew of run-ins with the law. He was arrested several times in the latter half of the 1990s for drug-related charges before he eventually received a three-year prison sentence in 1999, of which he served 15 months. After being paroled in 2000, he joined the cast of legal comedy-drama "Ally McBeal" as Larry Paul, only to continue his substance abuse and legal troubles. He was soon booted from the show. "I'm probably not the best person to ask about that period," Downey told The Guardian. "It was my lowest point in terms of addictions."

Looking at Robert Downey Jr.'s acting résumé, it's easy to pinpoint the era when Hollywood was most hesitant to cast him. Unsurprisingly, it corresponds with his personal life low points in the late 1990s and early 2000s. While the first half of the decade features vintage Downey classics like his Academy Award-nominated role as Charlie Chaplin in 1992's "Chaplin" and his turns as Lord Rivers in "Richard III" and Bill Bush in the Robert Altman ensemble movie "Short Cuts," the actor's late-1990s fare is far less acclaimed and involves projects like the Billy Zane action movie "Danger Zone."

Downey became sober in 2003 and started reconstructing his career with films like "Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang," "Good Night, and Good Luck," and "Zodiac." However, in the early 2000s, his reputation for unpredictability was so bad that his future "Oppenheimer" director Christopher Nolan was outright unnerved upon meeting the actor while casting "Batman Begins." "I was a huge admirer of yours and therefore selfishly just wanted to take the meeting," Nolan told Downey in a joint interview for The New York Times. "But I was also a little afraid of you, you know. I had heard all kinds of stories about how you were crazy. It was only a few years after the last of those stories that had come out about you."

Robert Downey Jr. landed the role of Iron Man in the MCU thanks to a combination of Jon Favreau's determination and the actor's own ability. Tony Stark is a brilliant but complicated character who has more than his share of demons and childhood issues, and "Iron Man" director Favreau realized that Downey would be the perfect person to portray the character in the 2008 movie. The studio was keenly aware of Downey's reputation and was hesitant to cast him, but Favreau championed the actor all the way to the audition — and after RDJ got a chance to read for the role, he was undeniable. Combine "Iron Man" with an Academy Award-nominated performance in "Tropic Thunder," and it's easy to see why 2008 was a big year in Downey's redemption arc.

At the time, there was no way of knowing what the MCU would become or how instrumental Downey would be in its development. Nevertheless, the importance of the "Iron Man" opportunity wasn't lost on the actor after spending years in professional and personal wilderness. "I am thrilled to have made this movie with Jon," Downey told The New York Times in 2008. "I seem to have been the person who's had to wait the longest for this kind of gratification. It took a while. ['Chaplin' director] Richard Attenborough told me that one day your ambition will supersede all of these other impulses you have, and that will help set you straight."

It's not hard to agree with Attenborough. After embracing sobriety, Downey has spent years as the MCU's franchise player, won an Academy Award, and for his next act has even agreed to return to the superhero universe as fan-favorite supervillain Doctor Doom.

If you or anyone you know needs help with addiction issues, help is available. Visit the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website or contact SAMHSA's National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).