Christopher Nolan Pushed Robert Downey Jr. To Avoid His Acting Trademarks For Oppenheimer
Christopher Nolan Pushed Robert Downey Jr. To Avoid His Acting Trademarks For Oppenheimer
In Christopher Nolan's new film "Oppenheimer," Robert Downey, Jr. plays Lewis Strauss, a former United States Secretary of Commerce who also served as the chairman of the country's Atomic Energy Commission from 1953 to 1958. Strauss was a divisive figure, and some scholars have posited that Strauss rewrote certain records of America's nuclear development to highlight his own heroism. Seeing that Downey is playing the role, one might naturally assume that Strauss is going to be depicted as energetic, talkative, and charming. Downey, while having played a wide variety of roles, seems to stand out when he's allowed to be dazzling, witty, and intelligent. One might say they are the actor's calling cards.
It seems, however, that Nolan wanted Downey to act specifically against type to play Strauss. Downey, as he revealed in a recent interview with the New York Times Magazine, was somewhat relieved. No one more than Downey is aware of his public image as an actor. He knows that playing the role of Iron Man in multiple Marvel Cinematic Universe movies cemented him as a wry quipster in the eye of the moviegoing public. Both Downey and his fans know that he is capable of much more than just Iron Man. The actor even admits being a little afraid that he might have lost a lot of his mojo, as the bulk of his work for the better part of a decade was almost exclusively the MCU (from 2012 to 2019 the only non-MCU film he starred in was the Oscar-bait dud "The Judge").
Of course, in working with Nolan, Downey knew he would have to stretch and reach into talents and acting techniques he hadn't touched in quite some time. It was a relief to do something new and challenging, but it was, well, challenging.
Source: /Film