Robert Downey Jr. started his acting career at a young age but has not won an Oscar even after playing some really impressive roles.

Robert Downey Jr. has gained widespread acclaim for his versatile performances in a variety of genres. Having a deep connection with the entertainment world due to his parents, his acting career kickstarted at a young age as he appeared in his father, Robert Downey Sr.’s movies. Given his work, he once talked about being fine ending his acting career without an Oscar. He garnered early attention with his early works like Weird Science (1995), Less Than Zero (1987) and Chaplin (1992).

Robert Downey Jr as Iron Man
For the 1992 film, he earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor for his portrayal of legend Charlie Chaplin. He gained another Oscar nomination in the Best Supporting Actor category for his movie, Tropic Thunder(2008). While he did not end up with the award, he “couldn’t care less” about winning it anyway. 

Robert Downey Jr. Commented on Getting an Oscar

Robert Downey Jr. in a still from Oppenheimer
During a 2013 GQ interview, Robert Downey Jr. shared his remarks on getting an Oscar in his acting journey. When asked whether he would like to win one, he responded bluntly, “I couldn’t care less.”

He confidently mentioned that he knew that it would be going to become a reality someday. “Well, I know it’s going to happen…That’s just a fact.”

He continued, 

“I, personally, would be shocked if we went to the end of the tape now and I didn’t have at least one… Because it just doesn’t make sense. That’s why I don’t mind showing up and watching everybody else get them.”

He further mentioned that the Academy would have to give him one as he gets old. Being super confident in his art, he believes that he would go to get one. 

“Look, even if I don’t get one directly, eventually they’re just going to have to give me one when I get old. So no matter how you slice it, I’m getting one.”

While he would surely want an Oscar one day, even zero is a number he is completely okay with as he shared, 

“‘No, I should probably have more. But zero’s fine.’ The humility sits there alone for a moment, just long enough to get lonely. “Zero, or two.”

Though the actor is fine with not bagging any Oscars in his acting career, he did address that he deserved to win the first Oscar for his iconic role in Chaplin. 

Robert Downey Jr. Believed He Deserved an Oscar for His Charlie Chaplin Portrayal

Robert Downey Jr. as Charlie Chaplin

In the same interview, the MCU actor addressed losing the chance to win the Oscar as Al Pacino bagged it for his role in Scent of a Woman. Downey Jr.’s first Oscar nomination was for his portrayal of silent iconic actor, Charlie Chaplin in Chaplin.

The movie revolves around the titular character’s life and career which surely was a challenging role for a young actor. He was clearly disappointed when he was unable to win the award which he coveted at that time. 

“Which I’m sure he deserved,” he stated. “You’re talking Downey Version Minus 2.0…so yeah, I was ‘This was my night….’ “

During an interview with Vanity Fair, he revealed the challenging process of getting into the role. He practiced for hours just to mimic what the legendary film actor used to do. 

“Chaplin was an absolute gift and a real bear of a challenge for someone who was 25 when I started prepping to do it…At a certain point I had a one way mirror with a TV playing VHS tapes of his old films and I would try to match up where his face was in mine and literally just mimic him for hours and hours over a course of weeks and months. I employed every single way I could try to show up for that role.”

Though this role turned out to become one of the best works of the Iron Man actor, he was unable to bag the Oscar statuette. However, he has once again given a spectacular performance as Lewis Strauss in Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer. With the movie garnering widespread acclaim, an Oscar win is surely one of the things fans are highly anticipating for the actor.