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the 50-year-old has overcome early troubles to become one of the finest and best –liked actors of his generation . The Avengers: Age of Ultron star, on keeping the multi–billion dollar Marvel franchise fresh, Tony Star k’s broadening humanity, and how reuniting with co-star James Spader was a poetic completion of a career circle

by susan hornik & Matt Scanlon

It sounds pithy to toss around the supposition that Hollywood will tolerate just about any measure of misbehavior and/or bad press if there is sufficient bottom-line motivation. Such pseudo profundity almost inevitably ends with a reference to Charlie Sheen and his bizarrely ongoing career, despite ample justification for its termination. The simple truth is, however, that Hollywood regularly, mechanically, tosses aside actors who are simply more trouble than they’re worth and/or are worth a lot but have simply exceeded the legal trouble/***hole/tantrum index. Examples of these are legion: Lindsay Lohan, Mike Myers, Steven Seagal, Mo’Nique—all of which have seen their arcs either ended or stunted.

In the aftermath of a 1996 to 2001 span in which he struggled with drug issues and their legal ramifications (including spending nearly a year in a substance abuse treatment facility within the California state prison system), there was every reason to think that Robert Downey Jr. would be another casualty of the well-known temptations of wealth and status arrived at young, and tossed aside as a result. But he wasn’t.

Instead, the now 50-year-old actor rallied, recovered, and has become one of the most well-respected, well-liked, and well-remunerated performers of his generation. Outspoken, honest, occasionally flinty, a damn good interview (witness an exchange from the red carpet premiere of his first Iron Man movie in which he described, probably apocryphally, the bathroom facilities within his suit of armor), and someone who seems to actually enjoy speaking to people—his characteristics add up to, in short, a guy you’re rooting for.

Readers who have just emerged from an extended stay in an ashram or cryogenic suspension should be reminded that Downey’s most recent film, in which he reprises the role of iron Manprotagonist Tony Stark in Avengers: Age of Ultron, has been an adventure in economic superlatives. The $250 million budget flick covered the entirety of its cost of production within just eight days of release, and is expected to comfortably exceed the $1 billion ticket sales mark worldwide, joining its fellow Marvel Cinematic Universe cohorts The Avengers ($1.52 billion), and Iron Man 3 ($1.21 billion) as among the highest grossing flicks ever made.

“I just hope people say ‘Wow!’ after they see this film,” said Downey. “When you have a big movie like this, there are big expectations, and I hope that audiences feel as good about this as they did when they came and saw the third Iron Man, and as they did when they saw the most recent Captain America and Thor. This movie is incredibly fun and thoughtful, and has great themes. There is also a whole bunch of new characters, and it really raises the bar. That’s when I knew it had my seal of approval.”

The second Avengers film co-stars Chris Evans as Captain America, Chris Hemsworth as Thor, Mark Ruffalo as the Hulk, Jeremy Renner as Hawkeye, Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow, and Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury. In keeping with his high likability rep, Downey was rumored to have, in addition to his staggering $50 million remuneration deal for the film, insisted that his fellow actors receive higher pay for revisiting their roles as a condition for his participation.

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Once the deal was made, however, cast and producers alike seemed to blend into their superhero tasks more than happily, and with a good deal of geekish enthusiasm. The film’s executive producer, Jeremy Latcham, helped flesh out a few story dynamics for us, including why the Avengers chose to break away from their traditional S.H.I.E.L.D. (Supreme Headquarters, International Espionage, Law-Enforcement Division) affiliation.

“One of the reasons we loved the idea of dismantling S.H.I.E.L.D. was that The Avengers didn’t have a giant government organization to support them anymore, so they’re really on their own,” he explained. “Tony Stark, as you might

guess, is financing them, but at one point he even says, ‘Captain America’s the leader.’ And while they’re not together all the time, they do have an official headquarters, as Tony has transformed Stark Tower from the first film into the new Avengers Tower.”

About that new tower, Downey offered, “I don’t know of anyone in the history of any superhero franchise who seems never to run out of money! Tony’s footing the bill, and he can swing it obviously. Pepper [played by Gwyneth Paltrow in Iron Man movies] has taken over the business largely, so everything’s going to be a little more stable than when daddy was just writing checks.”

Downey added that, “Tony wants to localize and nurture this necessary counterbalancing faction that is The Avengers. He feels by having them all together, that it allows him to still be a bit of the engineer and the mechanic, he just wants to help them all do things a little bit better. It’s like buying a football team and then wanting to re-do their uniforms and give them better equipment and make them stronger, faster, and safer on the field.”

Downey enjoyed the repartee among The Avengers, too. “What I loved about this script was the further development of the complexities of the relationship between them all,” he said. “I loved that Thor has a beef with me and then eventually has to give in and say I’m right. It’s interesting, and the way it all wraps up, to me, is super-exciting, but my favorite part about Avengers: Age of Ultron is what is brought into potential by the story in this film.”

A special synergy was apparent between Downey and co-star James Spader, who plays Ultron, a malevolent robot who mixes raw violence and dry humor in satisfyingly equal proportions.

“There are a lot of full circles going on with this film,” Downey laughed. “Probably the most personal one is James. He was the first person I saw when I came to Los Angeles, and he really took me under his wing. He’s just a couple years older, but I think it was a very inspired casting choice, not just because he’s on everyone’s lips and minds again, but he really is a bit of an American treasure, and I’ve certainly borrowed from his style more than a few times over the years.”

Downey was born on April 4, 1965, in New York City, the son of avant-garde filmmaker Robert Downey, Sr., who is best known for the 1969 film Putney Swope. Downey began acting as a child (his mother, Elsie, was an actress who instilled in her son a love of performing). He made his film debut playing a puppy in his father’s film, Pound (1970), in which actors played dogs (he’d go on to have small parts in several more of his father’s films). His parents divorced when he was 13, and the young actor ended up living in Los Angeles with his dad. At the age of 16, however, he dropped out of high school and was on the move again, relocating to New York to live with his mother.

Downey made early feature film appearances in Baby, It’s You (1983), Firstborn (1984), Weird Science (1985), and Back to School (1986). From 1985 to 1986, he was a regular cast member of Saturday Night Live. A first leading role was that of a charming womanizer in The Pick-up Artist (1987), a romantic comedy co-starring Molly Ringwald and written and directed by James Toback. His breakthrough performance, however, came in 1987 with Less Than Zero, co-starring Andrew McCarthy and James Spader. Downey played the party loving, cocaine-addicted Julian Wells in the film.

Downey was nominated for an Academy Award (best actor) for his performance in Chaplin (1992), directed by Richard Attenborough. The role illustrated his dramatic range as well as a talent for physical comedy. In 1994, he appeared in the romantic comedy Only You, as well as in Oliver Stone’s acclaimed but controversial Natural Born Killers. The following year, the actor starred in the period film Restoration alongside Meg Ryan and Sam Neill; an updated film version of Richard III (1995), co-starring Ian McKellen and Annette Bening; and the Jodie Foster-directed Home for the Holidays, also featuring Holly Hunter.

There have been starring roles in no fewer than 35 films since then, from the madcap Tropic Thunder (2008) to the cerebral Sherlock Holmes (2009, 2011), dystopic Gothika (2003) to sweet slice of life Chef (2014). Along the way, he has racked up Golden Globes for best film performance by an actor (Sherlock Holmes) and best performance by an actor in a supporting role (for the TV series Ally McBeal), a BAFTA award for best actor for Chaplin, and has been nominated twice for Oscars—as best actor in Chaplin and best supporting actor in Tropic Thunder.

Downey, who is married to producer Susan Levin, has a son named Exton Elias Downey, and recently welcomed a daughter Avri Roel Downey last November. He also has a son, Indio Falconer Downey, 21, through a previous marriage to actress/singer Deborah Falconer. His upcoming films include a return as Tony Stark/Iron Man in Captain America: Civil War (2016 release date) and a third Sherlock Holmes turn, which at press date lacks a release schedule.