Coming clean

“I do see this as Act II, but I see it as an Act II that was really hard-won,” the prolific 41-year-old actor told reporters in New York last week.
Born in New York City’s Greenwich Village to underground filmmaker Robert Downey Sr. and his wife, Elsie, Downey Jr.’s first on-screen acting job was at the age 5 in his father’s film, “Pound.” The following year, he acted in another of Dad’s movies, “Greaser’s Palace,” which coincidentally starred Allen Arbus, the husband of late visionary photographer, Diane Arbus, the fictionalized subject of Downey Jr.’s most recent film. His parents divorced when he was 11, after which Downey Jr. was raised by his father in California.
After dropping out of high school at the age of 17, the handsome, witty actor quickly became grouped into young Hollywood’s Brat Pack. Although he starred in goofy ’80s comedies like “Weird Science” and “Back to School,” he soon made it clear he intended to develop as both an actor and comedian and broke away from the pack. Briefly joining the cast of “Saturday Night Live” in 1985, the actor returned to film the following year to play two of his signature roles-a charming rogue in James Toback’s romantic comedy, “The Pick-Up Artist,” and a rich kid who can’t kick his life-threatening drug habit in Marek Kanievska’s harrowing drama, “Less than Zero.” In retrospect, the two performances suggested the endearing, erratic man and addict Downey Jr. would soon become.
Downey Jr., who has named hard-partying screen icon, Peter O’Toole, as his favorite actor, worked frequently during the 1990s and while his performances usually won accolades, the projects he chose met with mixed reactions. He was nominated for an Academy Award for his uncanny portrayal of Charlie Chaplin in the bio-pic, “Chaplin,” garnered rave reviews as a smarmy TV news reporter in “Natural Born Killers,” surprised critics with his turn as a 17th Century, philandering doctor in “Restoration” and charmed female moviegoers as the romantic leads in “Chances Are” and “Only You.”
But just when it seemed Downey Jr. was at the top of his game, his personal life was spiraling out of control. Reportedly having sampled marijuana with his father at the tender age of 8, Downey Jr. spent the late 1990s and early 2000s in and out of jail and rehab due to his real-life drug addiction. At his lowest points, he was found wandering in an alley and passed out in a child’s bed in a stranger’s home. Diagnosed as bipolar and manic-depressive, Downey Jr. has said his father’s introducing him to drugs at such an early age was indicative of the generation in which he grew up, not necessarily an example of bad parenting. It was during this time that he also divorced Deborah Falconer, his wife of 12 years and the mother of his now 13-year-old son, Indio.
His extraordinary talent and versatility, as well as the respect of his peers, particularly filmmaker James Toback and actor/director Mel Gibson, however, meant Downey Jr. continued to work in between periods of treatment and incarceration.
Appearing equally at home in independent projects like “Two Guys and a Girl,” “Friends & Lovers,” “Black and White,” “The Singing Detective” and “Wonder Boys” and Hollywood blockbusters like “In Dreams,” “U.S. Marshals” and “Bowfinger,” the actor also earned a Golden Globe Award for his work on the popular TV comedy, “Ally McBeal,” in 2000. Unfortunately, he was fired from the show after he was again arrested on drugs and weapons charges in 2001. That said, the incident was his last reported brush with the law.
Since cleaning up his act, the student of Shaolin Kung Fu released a music CD called “The Futurist,” married producer Susan Levin and has appeared in the movies “Kiss Kiss Bang Bang,” “Good Night, and Good Luck,” “The Shaggy Dog,” “A Scanner Darkly” and “A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints.”
His latest film, “Fur,” casts Downey Jr. as the mysterious neighbor who inspires Diane Arbus (Nicole Kidman,) a shy Manhattan housewife, to explore her unique vision of beauty and passion for photographing people on the fringes of society. Downey Jr.’s character, Lionel, is a man who has a disease that covers his face and body with hair, forcing him to wear a mask in public. While Diane sees through the fur to the man beneath, Lionel introduces her to his bizarre world and the fascinating “freaks” that inhabit it.
Downey Jr. said he could relate a bit to the relationship the characters have in the film, since he has benefited creatively when more experienced people helped in “ushering me into a new era” — whether it was Warren Beatty, the executive producer of “The Pick-Up Artist,” or Richard Attenborough, his director on “Chaplin,” or his own mother. His marriage to Levin has also offered him insight into how people can help each other follow their dreams.
“Things have taken quantum leaps in the last bunch of years for me and, aside from obvious reasons, it’s just that you get into a partnership and that partnership becomes a third thing and then both of you become capable of feats otherwise impossible,” he noted.
Next up for Downey Jr. is playing the title hero in an eagerly awaited, big-budget comic-book adaptation.
“I’m taking three months to put three inches on each arm and then going to play ‘Iron Man,'” he said.
Asked what the appeal of playing this character is, he noted: “He’s the guy that didn’t get bit by spiders; he’s the MIT graduate who makes this spectacular piece of machinery out of necessity; literal necessity. He actually needs it to stay alive. So, again, getting back to kind of a mythology, it’s kind of like the subtleties are what wind up reeling me in. I know it’s funny to say ‘subtlety’ and ‘Marvel’ trilogy at the same time, but it’s true. He’s a complex character.”
Downey Jr. said he is amazed by how fans are constantly pulling him aside to discuss the character.
“Braniac guys, super-genius guys, Fortune 500 guys and guys on the street and Starbucks guys are just like: ‘Dude, “Iron Man,” Tony Stark, Vol. 117, when he has the stealth suit. The stealth suit is a metaphor….’ And I’m like, ‘Cool!’ It’s really exciting.”

The Robert Downey Jr. file
Born: 1965 in New York City.
Family: Mainly of Irish and Jewish heritage, his parents are underground filmmaker Robert Downey Sr. and his late ex-wife, Elsie, who was an actress/dancer. He has one son, 13-year-old Indio, from his first marriage to actress Deborah Falconer. He married his second wife, producer Susan Levin, last year.
Career: Made his big-screen debut at the age of five in his father’s film, “Pound,” amassing more than 60 TV and film credits on his resume to date. He was part of the 1980s Hollywood Brat Pack, starring in “Weird Science,” “Back to School,” “The Pick-Up Artist” and “Less than Zero” and earned an Oscar nomination for his work in the bio-pic “Chaplin” and a Golden Globe Award for his role on TV’s “Ally McBeal.” He has also been hired to play Marvel comics hero, “Iron Man,” in an upcoming film.

“Fur: An Imagined Portrait of Diane Arbus” is in theaters now.