How did Robert Downey Jr. play Iron Man?

When people think of Robert Downey Jr., they think of Iron Man first. But the name "Iron Man" could just as easily be applied to the actor even in the absence of a combination of red and gold metal.

Early Success, Later Annoyances

Downey first became successful in the early '80s with roles in such films as Baby It's You and Weird Science . His breakthrough came through the 1987 film Less Than Zero in which he played the character addicted to cocaine, Julian Wells. As the world knows, this role has been detrimental.

But the trouble did not go wild at first, at least not in public. By the time Less Than Zero arrived, Downey had already attracted attention as a cast member of Saturday Night Live from 1985 to 1986. His star continued to rise, culminating in a Oscar nomination for the 1992 biopic Chaplin on the legendary actor and comic book director who created the Little Tramp. Downey was only 27 at the time.

According to Biography, Downey's bad habits soon took over. He stated about Less Than Zero : "Until this film, I took my drugs after work and on weekends … that changed the Less than Zero ]"He said later.

"For me, the role looked like the ghost of Christmas's future. The character was an exaggeration of myself. Then things changed and in some ways I became an exaggeration of the character. It lasted much longer than necessary.

He hit bottom in 1996 after being stopped by police after driving without clothes but with cocaine and heroin on Sunset Boulevard. Only a few weeks later, he was found fainting at a neighbor's house.

Although his talent still drives him into series as Ally McBeal drug problems continue to hold him and he is serving a prison sentence.

A Wonderful Recovery

In 2005, Downey's fortunes began to improve. He played a role in the Oscar-nominated news drama Good Night and Good Luck and he received praise for the sleeper Kiss Kiss Bang Bang directed by Shane Black, who had written Lethal Weapon and would continue to direct Iron Man 3 among others

But it was Iron Man that truly reinforced the resurgence of Downey, when the actor became director Jon Favreau tried his luck on the actor.

Favreau stated in The Orange County Register:

"I must admit that Robert was a hard seller … (Marvel) wanted a lesser-known actor, without luggage. Honestly, the fact that Robert lived all the highs and lows of his life in a fishbowl did not help. That was enough to give a lot of anxiety to the studio executives. They put all their business on this franchise, and I bring them Robert.

Even though Downey himself was not convinced at first, he offered to audition the piece, which he had not done in 15 years. This sealed the market. Before Downey or anyone else knew it, a new film universe was born – and Downey's career was reborn.

Tony Stark and Beyond