Robert Downey Jr. is one of our favorite actors of all time. The man oozes charisma and in every role; you can’t help but be drawn to him. RDJ was born on April 4, 1965, in New York City, the son of writer, director, and filmographer Robert Downey Sr. and actress Elsie Downey.
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As a child, Downey was “surrounded by drugs“. His father was a drug addict, and his mother was an alcoholic. Downey Sr. His father allowed him to try marijuana when he was six years old by handing him a joint and said, “Take a puff.” RDJ has said he also “might have had a little coke” as a child. Growing up in the 70s, his father thought nothing of it. The Iron Man alum stated that he and his father did drugs together for the first time when he was eight and that drug use became an emotional bond between him and his father as a way of “him trying to express his love for me in the only way he knew how.”
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Robert Downey Jr. made his acting debut at five years old in his father’s 1970 film Pound as a sick puppy. Downey’s parents divorced in 1977 when he was twelve. He went and lived with his mother, while his sister Allyson went to live with their father in California. RDJ went to live with his father in California but dropped out of high school. At 17, he moved back to New York to pursue an acting career.
The actor started gaining critical acclaim, appearing in Less Than Zero, Weird Science, and Chaplin. However, he was battling drug addiction, was arrested several times, and was in and out of rehab for the next ten years. It wasn’t until 2003 that Downey turned things around in his sobriety. 2008 was the actor’s biggest year, starring in back-to-back blockbusters Iron Man and Tropic Thunder. Since then, the actor has stayed sober and credits it all to his wife, Susan Downey, after she gave him an ultimatum.
Take a look below at Robert Downey Jr.’s 5 best roles:
