WITH Robert Downey Jr. Having firmly become one of the most beloved and recognizable actors in Hollywood today, it is easy to forget that this was not always the case. There was a time before Avengersbefore iron Manthat Downey Jr wasn’t such a sure bet for the studios, which is why the films the actor has called the most important to his career may surprise you. Speaking to The New York Times, the star didn’t name his turn as MCU’s Tony Stark, but rather his 2006 appearance. shaggy dogand failed 2020 Doolittle as the most important for his career.
shaggy dog saw a star in the form of a sinister doctor who Tim Allenthe character transforms into his titled bearded collie. The film was met with mostly negative reviews, and currently has an approval rating of just 26% on review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes. However, it was crucial to resurrect the star’s career, as Downey Jr. called it “the movie that made Disney say they’d insure me.” While Downey Jr. may have become synonymous with Marvel’s high-tech armored Avenger, being an important part of turning the studio’s cinematic universe into the cultural landmark it is today, his casting was initially considered a risk. In April 1996, the actor was arrested for possession of heroin, cocaine and an unloaded gun. Downey Jr’s appearance shaggy dog was his return.
Doolittle was another failure for the actor, from which Downey Jr. learned a valuable lesson. “I ended my contract with Marvel and then hurried into what promised to be another big, fun, well-executed potential franchise. Doolittle,” he said. “I had some reservations. My team and I seemed too excited about the deal and not excited enough about the merits of the execution. But at that point, I was bulletproof. I was the guru of all genre films.”
Doolittle Taught Downey Jr. a valuable lesson
Describing it as “the second most important film” of his career, he called Doolittle “two and a half years of missed opportunity.” The family blockbuster had a budget of $175 million but flopped upon release in January 2020, receiving some of the worst reviews of the star’s career. Despite this, Downey Jr. believes the film forced him to re-evaluate his priorities in the post-MCU phase of his career. Doolittle was produced by him and his wife, Susan Downey, under Team Downey Productions; “The stress it put on my wife as she rolled up her sleeves to her underarms to make it salable enough was shocking,” he said. “After this moment, what is this phrase? Never let a good crisis go to waste? “We have reprioritized and made some changes to our closest business advisors.”
Downey Jr. returns to theaters later this month when he appears in Christopher Nolanvery expected Oppenheimer. The film will premiere on July 21 at Universal Pictures. Check out the trailer below:
Source: Collider
My name is Wendy Thorne and I was born on October 1st, 1990. I grew up in Los Angeles, CA and currently reside in Brooklyn, NY. I work as a staff writer for a news website and have been authoring articles for Daily News Hack since 2020. The topics I mostly cover are entertainment news and celebrity gossip.
