1 00:00:03,921 --> 00:00:06,298 ♪♪ 2 00:00:06,298 --> 00:00:08,467 -Damn. -Good luck, keeping up. 3 00:00:08,467 --> 00:00:11,803 -Robert Downey Jr.'s 2008 portrayal of Iron Man 4 00:00:11,803 --> 00:00:15,849 helps Kickstart Marvel's $3 billion cinematic universe. 5 00:00:15,849 --> 00:00:18,810 ♪♪ 6 00:00:18,810 --> 00:00:20,938 -He's one of those actors 7 00:00:20,938 --> 00:00:26,235 that there's an extra sprinkling of something special. 8 00:00:26,235 --> 00:00:29,071 -But in the '90s, the actor has more in common 9 00:00:29,071 --> 00:00:32,866 with the superheroes rich out of control alter ego. 10 00:00:32,866 --> 00:00:34,868 -Robert's grown up in the public eye, 11 00:00:34,868 --> 00:00:38,330 and Tony Stark, he's a guy who's also grown up in the public eye. 12 00:00:38,330 --> 00:00:44,836 ♪♪ 13 00:00:44,836 --> 00:00:49,466 -You've got all these gifts, but you're taking heroin. 14 00:00:49,466 --> 00:00:51,677 -Downey's addictions to drugs and alcohol 15 00:00:51,677 --> 00:00:54,137 nearly cost him everything... 16 00:00:54,137 --> 00:00:56,682 -As far as Hollywood is concerned, he's toast. 17 00:00:56,682 --> 00:00:58,308 -...Even his life. 18 00:00:58,308 --> 00:01:00,686 -It's like I have a shotgun in my mouth, 19 00:01:00,686 --> 00:01:02,312 and I've got my finger on the trigger, 20 00:01:02,312 --> 00:01:04,147 and I like the taste of the gun metal. 21 00:01:04,147 --> 00:01:11,154 ♪♪ 22 00:01:11,154 --> 00:01:18,203 ♪♪ 23 00:01:18,203 --> 00:01:25,210 ♪♪ 24 00:01:25,210 --> 00:01:31,925 ♪♪ 25 00:01:31,925 --> 00:01:38,557 -I had a really serious sick love affair with cocaine. 26 00:01:38,557 --> 00:01:42,561 And like a friend of mine who put it behind him said, 27 00:01:42,561 --> 00:01:45,188 he calls cocaine "The Lady." 28 00:01:45,188 --> 00:01:47,941 -In July of 2000, "NBC News" ventures 29 00:01:47,941 --> 00:01:50,193 inside the California State Prison Center 30 00:01:50,193 --> 00:01:51,945 where Charles Manson is locked up, 31 00:01:51,945 --> 00:01:54,740 to interview an equally famous prisoner, 32 00:01:54,740 --> 00:01:58,160 35-year-old Robert Downey Jr. 33 00:01:58,160 --> 00:02:01,204 -And he said the only way you can respect The Lady 34 00:02:01,204 --> 00:02:03,999 is to stop seeing her altogether. 35 00:02:03,999 --> 00:02:07,711 -Downey, inmate number P50522, 36 00:02:07,711 --> 00:02:09,671 is 12 months into his three-year sentence 37 00:02:09,671 --> 00:02:11,548 for a litany of drug offenses, 38 00:02:11,548 --> 00:02:15,052 including the possession of heroin and cocaine. 39 00:02:15,052 --> 00:02:17,054 -And that was always difficult to me, 40 00:02:17,054 --> 00:02:19,097 'cause, you know, breaking up is hard to do. 41 00:02:19,097 --> 00:02:23,018 -And not even prison will split up Downey and The Lady. 42 00:02:23,018 --> 00:02:25,687 But when he and drugs finally do call it quits, 43 00:02:25,687 --> 00:02:27,314 he will embark on one of Hollywood's 44 00:02:27,314 --> 00:02:29,441 most blockbuster comebacks, 45 00:02:29,441 --> 00:02:31,652 finally achieving the professional acclaim 46 00:02:31,652 --> 00:02:33,862 that seemed his birthright. 47 00:02:33,862 --> 00:02:35,656 -And the Oscar goes to 48 00:02:35,656 --> 00:02:37,866 Robert Downey Jr.! 49 00:02:37,866 --> 00:02:40,077 [ Cheers and applause ] 50 00:02:41,578 --> 00:02:45,499 -Born in Manhattan in April of 1965, 51 00:02:45,499 --> 00:02:50,045 Downey Jr.'s mother Elsie is an actress. 52 00:02:50,045 --> 00:02:52,089 And his father, Robert Downey Sr., 53 00:02:52,089 --> 00:02:55,425 an avant-garde independent filmmaker. 54 00:02:57,010 --> 00:02:59,721 It's in one of his father's experimental films, 55 00:02:59,721 --> 00:03:03,433 the 5-year-old Jr. gets his first acting role. 56 00:03:03,433 --> 00:03:05,727 -His first on screen performance was in a film called "Pound." 57 00:03:05,727 --> 00:03:07,729 It kind of sums up, I think, 58 00:03:07,729 --> 00:03:09,731 his dad's slightly experimental background in 59 00:03:09,731 --> 00:03:12,651 that it was a dog pound, but everyone was human. 60 00:03:12,651 --> 00:03:14,319 So everyone was playing different dogs. 61 00:03:14,319 --> 00:03:15,696 -Next morning, we go upstairs. 62 00:03:15,696 --> 00:03:17,781 There's no more furniture, the roof's gone. 63 00:03:17,781 --> 00:03:21,201 -His dad kind of put him in this film as a puppy. 64 00:03:21,201 --> 00:03:22,953 -That tornado scared me so much, 65 00:03:22,953 --> 00:03:24,663 it made my hair disappear. 66 00:03:24,663 --> 00:03:27,541 -His first line was, "Have you got any hair on your balls?" 67 00:03:27,541 --> 00:03:30,210 -Have any hair on your balls? [ Laughter ] 68 00:03:30,210 --> 00:03:31,920 -I don't know if you're allowed to say that on -- on -- 69 00:03:31,920 --> 00:03:33,755 [ Laughing ] On Vice. 70 00:03:33,755 --> 00:03:35,841 My name is Ben Falk, I'm an entertainment journalist 71 00:03:35,841 --> 00:03:38,343 and film writer, and I'm also the author 72 00:03:38,343 --> 00:03:41,722 of "Robert Danny Jr: The Fall and Rise of the Comeback Kid." 73 00:03:41,722 --> 00:03:43,849 [ Funky music plays ] 74 00:03:43,849 --> 00:03:46,226 -With this mom and dad, a part of New York's artsy 75 00:03:46,226 --> 00:03:50,439 1960s counterculture scene, 76 00:03:50,439 --> 00:03:53,734 Downey Jr. is there to witness at all. 77 00:03:53,734 --> 00:03:55,819 -He was just absorbing all this stuff in. 78 00:03:55,819 --> 00:03:58,321 Um, and when I say absorbing all that stuff in, 79 00:03:58,321 --> 00:04:01,283 I mean, like, literally sucking in the pot smoke 80 00:04:01,283 --> 00:04:03,618 because drugs were being done at home. 81 00:04:03,618 --> 00:04:07,706 ♪♪ 82 00:04:07,706 --> 00:04:10,041 -Downey Jr. says he was just a little kid 83 00:04:10,041 --> 00:04:14,129 when his father first offers him a chance to smoke marijuana. 84 00:04:14,129 --> 00:04:17,632 -His dad famously gave him his first joint. 85 00:04:17,632 --> 00:04:19,634 His dad was like, "Yeah, take this. Who cares? 86 00:04:19,634 --> 00:04:22,637 It's from the garden, it's fine." 87 00:04:22,637 --> 00:04:24,639 The sort of story changes, 88 00:04:24,639 --> 00:04:27,476 like, sometimes it's six, sometimes it's eight, 89 00:04:27,476 --> 00:04:29,770 sometimes it's seven, but certainly, um, 90 00:04:29,770 --> 00:04:33,565 around six, seven, eight, he was already smoking pot. 91 00:04:35,275 --> 00:04:36,902 I'm not a trained psychologist, 92 00:04:36,902 --> 00:04:38,737 but it was kind of inevitable, I think, actually, 93 00:04:38,737 --> 00:04:40,906 that he'd end up getting embroiled in that world 94 00:04:40,906 --> 00:04:45,202 because it was normalized, uh, right from the very beginning. 95 00:04:45,202 --> 00:04:47,954 -An actual trained doctor, an addiction specialist says 96 00:04:47,954 --> 00:04:49,915 nothing is inevitable. 97 00:04:49,915 --> 00:04:54,836 But being exposed to drugs at an early age can be problematic. 98 00:04:54,836 --> 00:04:57,881 -To give a child alcohol 99 00:04:57,881 --> 00:05:01,676 or weed... 100 00:05:01,676 --> 00:05:05,806 you can throw the switch on the predisposed very easily. 101 00:05:08,517 --> 00:05:09,810 My name is Dr. Drew Pinsky. 102 00:05:09,810 --> 00:05:12,062 In the '90s, I was doing a radio show 103 00:05:12,062 --> 00:05:13,647 called "Love Line," 104 00:05:13,647 --> 00:05:15,398 but really the vast majority of my time 105 00:05:15,398 --> 00:05:18,360 was spent running a large addiction recovery program 106 00:05:18,360 --> 00:05:21,613 in a psychiatric hospital. 107 00:05:21,613 --> 00:05:25,158 If you're exposed young, your risk of addiction, 108 00:05:25,158 --> 00:05:29,830 if you have the genetic background, begins to skyrocket. 109 00:05:29,830 --> 00:05:31,915 -Downey Jr.'s genetic background comes through 110 00:05:31,915 --> 00:05:34,626 his father, a lifelong addict. 111 00:05:34,626 --> 00:05:39,548 Downey Sr.'s drug issues contribute to a divorce in 1978. 112 00:05:39,548 --> 00:05:42,259 After his dad relocates to Los Angeles, 113 00:05:42,259 --> 00:05:45,637 Downey Jr. follows him out to Hollywood. 114 00:05:45,637 --> 00:05:49,140 -Robert Downey Jr. went to Santa Monica High School. 115 00:05:49,140 --> 00:05:51,643 I'm Michael Fleeman and in the 1990s, 116 00:05:51,643 --> 00:05:54,187 I was an entertainment reporter. 117 00:05:54,187 --> 00:05:56,523 It's a public school, Santa Monica, 118 00:05:56,523 --> 00:05:58,483 west side of Los Angeles 119 00:05:58,483 --> 00:06:02,320 that had so many famous young actors 120 00:06:02,320 --> 00:06:05,615 who would go on to become huge. 121 00:06:05,615 --> 00:06:08,285 -Some of Downey's classmates include Rob Lowe, 122 00:06:08,285 --> 00:06:11,830 Charlie Sheen, and Sean Penn. 123 00:06:11,830 --> 00:06:16,877 -Santa Monica High had a lot of drug kind of culture 124 00:06:16,877 --> 00:06:19,588 there was definitely coke kicking about. 125 00:06:19,588 --> 00:06:23,133 -At 17, Downey drops out of high school to pursue acting. 126 00:06:23,133 --> 00:06:25,468 Within a year, he lands his first big role 127 00:06:25,468 --> 00:06:29,222 playing a nasty kid named Lee in the movie "Firstborn." 128 00:06:30,432 --> 00:06:33,268 Also in the movie is future star of "Sex and the City," 129 00:06:33,268 --> 00:06:35,687 Sarah Jessica Parker. 130 00:06:35,687 --> 00:06:39,274 Downey and Parker, are seen dating. 131 00:06:39,274 --> 00:06:42,819 -She was this cool, very focused actress, 132 00:06:42,819 --> 00:06:44,863 and he was pretty much the opposite. 133 00:06:44,863 --> 00:06:47,115 The relationship happened really quickly. 134 00:06:47,115 --> 00:06:49,868 It kind of spiraled really, really fast into, like, 135 00:06:49,868 --> 00:06:51,995 being a quite serious relationship. 136 00:06:51,995 --> 00:06:53,955 -While dating Parker, Downey lands another 137 00:06:53,955 --> 00:06:57,167 mean kid role in "Weird Science." 138 00:06:57,167 --> 00:07:00,253 -Rumor has it, there's a big white sale going on. 139 00:07:00,253 --> 00:07:01,588 -At Towel World! -Towel World. 140 00:07:01,588 --> 00:07:03,548 [ Both laugh ] 141 00:07:03,548 --> 00:07:05,842 -The movie's directed by John Hughes, 142 00:07:05,842 --> 00:07:08,136 the man responsible for Brat Pack movies 143 00:07:08,136 --> 00:07:10,805 like "The Breakfast Club" and "Pretty and Pink." 144 00:07:10,805 --> 00:07:13,141 -Even though he was in a John Hughes film, 145 00:07:13,141 --> 00:07:14,684 Downey, I don't think you could ever call him 146 00:07:14,684 --> 00:07:16,019 part of the Brat Pack. 147 00:07:16,019 --> 00:07:18,229 He wasn't kind of one of the main 148 00:07:18,229 --> 00:07:19,731 body of that group. 149 00:07:19,731 --> 00:07:21,566 -After "Weird Science," Downey gets hired 150 00:07:21,566 --> 00:07:25,111 by "Saturday Night Live" creator Lorne Michaels, 151 00:07:25,111 --> 00:07:27,322 who, after quitting the show in 1980, 152 00:07:27,322 --> 00:07:30,825 returns to run "SNL" five years later. 153 00:07:30,825 --> 00:07:35,121 -Lorne Michaels was trying to resurrect "Saturday Night Live." 154 00:07:35,121 --> 00:07:39,042 And his idea was, let's bring in a load of young people 155 00:07:39,042 --> 00:07:43,171 because we need to bring in some fresh new blood. 156 00:07:43,171 --> 00:07:45,298 -The one aspect of working on "SNL" 157 00:07:45,298 --> 00:07:48,259 lives on from the heyday of Belushi and Chase. 158 00:07:48,259 --> 00:07:50,303 -Just the sheer kind of grind 159 00:07:50,303 --> 00:07:52,055 of what "Saturday Night Live" is, 160 00:07:52,055 --> 00:07:54,891 it being crazy and drugs kicking around. 161 00:07:54,891 --> 00:07:56,726 Um, we're still there. 162 00:07:56,726 --> 00:07:59,688 -Downey fully embraces that legacy. 163 00:07:59,688 --> 00:08:02,273 And is out most nights enjoying New York's 164 00:08:02,273 --> 00:08:04,359 drug-fueled club scene. 165 00:08:04,359 --> 00:08:09,406 -Everybody knew he was part of a fast living crowd. 166 00:08:09,406 --> 00:08:12,951 Everybody knew he was in the party scene. 167 00:08:12,951 --> 00:08:16,454 But there was never a sense that it had gotten out of control. 168 00:08:16,454 --> 00:08:17,997 He didn't miss work. 169 00:08:17,997 --> 00:08:19,416 -Despite his work ethic, 170 00:08:19,416 --> 00:08:21,668 the 11th season of "Saturday Night Live" 171 00:08:21,668 --> 00:08:25,130 is considered one of the weakest in the show's 50 year history. 172 00:08:25,130 --> 00:08:26,756 And Downey, like many others, 173 00:08:26,756 --> 00:08:28,925 is not invited back for another season. 174 00:08:28,925 --> 00:08:30,802 -You'll-- Ow! 175 00:08:30,802 --> 00:08:32,303 [ Laughter ] 176 00:08:32,303 --> 00:08:33,471 Hey. 177 00:08:35,015 --> 00:08:36,725 -It will take two years before Downey 178 00:08:36,725 --> 00:08:40,103 lands what many consider his breakout role. 179 00:08:40,103 --> 00:08:42,564 -Check me out. I'm gonna make a serious comeback. 180 00:08:42,564 --> 00:08:43,606 -Great. 181 00:08:43,606 --> 00:08:45,150 "Less Than Zero." 182 00:08:45,150 --> 00:08:47,193 -A big role for Robert Downey Jr. 183 00:08:47,193 --> 00:08:49,487 was playing this character, Julian, 184 00:08:49,487 --> 00:08:53,033 who is a drug addict who, by the end of the film, 185 00:08:53,033 --> 00:08:55,326 goes through an awful lot of horrible stuff 186 00:08:55,326 --> 00:08:57,746 in pursuit of drugs and because of drugs. 187 00:08:57,746 --> 00:09:01,666 I genuinely think it's one of the best films that he made. 188 00:09:01,666 --> 00:09:04,461 -Not here! We talked about this. 189 00:09:04,461 --> 00:09:07,380 "Less Than Zero" shows his best qualities. 190 00:09:07,380 --> 00:09:12,385 It shows a scene stealing actor who every time he's on screen, 191 00:09:12,385 --> 00:09:14,721 your eyes are magnetically drawn to him. 192 00:09:14,721 --> 00:09:16,306 -Always a pleasure. 193 00:09:16,306 --> 00:09:17,766 -And particularly in when he's going through that 194 00:09:17,766 --> 00:09:20,101 kind of pain, you really feel that pain 195 00:09:20,101 --> 00:09:21,895 right down to your marrow. 196 00:09:21,895 --> 00:09:23,480 -Looking back, it's easy to question 197 00:09:23,480 --> 00:09:25,690 whether Downey's performance as Julian 198 00:09:25,690 --> 00:09:28,234 is a case of life imitating art. 199 00:09:28,234 --> 00:09:30,153 Or the other way around. 200 00:09:30,153 --> 00:09:31,654 -He would sort of say that 201 00:09:31,654 --> 00:09:35,575 he wasn't experientially performing that role. 202 00:09:35,575 --> 00:09:37,535 But I think a lot of people who watched that film 203 00:09:37,535 --> 00:09:40,038 would say otherwise. -All you have to do is relax. 204 00:09:40,038 --> 00:09:42,082 I'm gonna pay you back. All you need to do is trust me. 205 00:09:42,082 --> 00:09:43,875 -I don't want to trust you, Julian. 206 00:09:43,875 --> 00:09:46,002 I just want my $50K, all right? 207 00:09:46,002 --> 00:09:49,839 -He certainly channeled a lot of his life 208 00:09:49,839 --> 00:09:52,509 and his demons into that role. 209 00:09:52,509 --> 00:09:54,511 Julian in "Less Than Zero," 210 00:09:54,511 --> 00:09:58,765 is What Robert Downey Jr. was about to become. 211 00:09:58,765 --> 00:10:00,517 -[Bleep] up. 212 00:10:05,021 --> 00:10:06,523 -In the late '80s, Robert Downey Jr.'s 213 00:10:06,523 --> 00:10:07,607 compelling performance 214 00:10:07,607 --> 00:10:08,983 as a desperate drug addict 215 00:10:08,983 --> 00:10:10,318 in "Less Than Zero" 216 00:10:10,318 --> 00:10:11,361 makes him one of Hollywood's 217 00:10:11,361 --> 00:10:13,113 most talked about young actors. 218 00:10:13,113 --> 00:10:15,865 But there's one person who knows the line between Downey 219 00:10:15,865 --> 00:10:18,076 acting like a drug addict and being one 220 00:10:18,076 --> 00:10:20,411 is more than just blurred. 221 00:10:20,411 --> 00:10:22,163 Downey's manager, Loree Rodkin 222 00:10:22,163 --> 00:10:25,500 forces him to take his first trip to rehab. 223 00:10:25,500 --> 00:10:28,586 But Rodkin learns no good deed goes unpunished. 224 00:10:28,586 --> 00:10:32,757 Downey pushes her out while clinging to his drug habit. 225 00:10:32,757 --> 00:10:36,302 -Your survival system is taken over 226 00:10:36,302 --> 00:10:39,139 by the pursuit of a chemical. 227 00:10:39,139 --> 00:10:43,101 It's extremely powerful, and it distorts everything else, 228 00:10:43,101 --> 00:10:45,895 thinking, emotions, interpersonal conduct. 229 00:10:45,895 --> 00:10:48,231 It -- It distorts all that 230 00:10:48,231 --> 00:10:53,653 and serves the one god of pursuing the substance. 231 00:10:53,653 --> 00:10:55,572 -But at this point, Downey substance abuse 232 00:10:55,572 --> 00:10:59,325 has yet to interfere with his on screen performances. 233 00:10:59,325 --> 00:11:01,202 -Anything anywhere, anytime. 234 00:11:01,202 --> 00:11:03,079 That's our motto. Well, it would be. 235 00:11:03,079 --> 00:11:05,165 -If we actually existed. -That's right. 236 00:11:05,165 --> 00:11:06,999 -Downey opens the '90s by being cast 237 00:11:06,999 --> 00:11:09,377 in the action comedy "Air America," 238 00:11:09,377 --> 00:11:12,630 alongside another actor with a history of addiction, 239 00:11:12,630 --> 00:11:14,090 Mel Gibson. 240 00:11:14,090 --> 00:11:18,386 ♪♪ 241 00:11:18,386 --> 00:11:20,805 Like Downey, Gibson starts drinking young, 242 00:11:20,805 --> 00:11:22,265 and by the time of "Air America," 243 00:11:22,265 --> 00:11:25,101 Gibson already has a DUI in Canada. 244 00:11:25,101 --> 00:11:27,103 ♪♪ 245 00:11:27,103 --> 00:11:30,023 -Mel Gibson had some issues, um, in terms of 246 00:11:30,023 --> 00:11:32,442 substance addiction and stuff like that. 247 00:11:32,442 --> 00:11:33,776 And so, I think, actually, 248 00:11:33,776 --> 00:11:36,237 there's a slight kind of older brother, 249 00:11:36,237 --> 00:11:38,823 younger brother relationship there. 250 00:11:38,823 --> 00:11:42,869 I think Robert Downey Jr. sees a lot of himself in Mel Gibson. 251 00:11:42,869 --> 00:11:44,704 -During shooting, Downey and Gibson 252 00:11:44,704 --> 00:11:46,873 grow into real world friends, 253 00:11:46,873 --> 00:11:48,583 not drinking buddies. 254 00:11:48,583 --> 00:11:50,960 -When he shot initially with Mel 255 00:11:50,960 --> 00:11:53,171 back for "Air America," he was clean. 256 00:11:53,171 --> 00:11:54,714 -Why are they shooting at us? 257 00:11:54,714 --> 00:11:55,924 -'Cause they're unfriendly. 258 00:11:55,924 --> 00:11:57,425 -Why is everyone so unfriendly? 259 00:11:57,425 --> 00:11:59,302 -Well, they haven't got to know us yet. 260 00:11:59,302 --> 00:12:02,513 -You know, he was actually on one of his kind of dry runs. 261 00:12:02,513 --> 00:12:06,434 -But that ends after "Air America" wraps. 262 00:12:06,434 --> 00:12:08,228 Downey is soon back out to late nights 263 00:12:08,228 --> 00:12:10,188 of drug-induced partying, 264 00:12:10,188 --> 00:12:12,398 which now includes not just snorting, 265 00:12:12,398 --> 00:12:16,027 but also smoking cocaine. 266 00:12:16,027 --> 00:12:19,489 -He was someone who was able to kind of 267 00:12:19,489 --> 00:12:21,866 have this incredible constitution 268 00:12:21,866 --> 00:12:24,744 and just being out at, like, the China Club one night, 269 00:12:24,744 --> 00:12:26,746 being out at the Roxbury another night, 270 00:12:26,746 --> 00:12:28,623 being out the Hollywood Canteen the next night, 271 00:12:28,623 --> 00:12:30,959 and then still managing to work the next day, 272 00:12:30,959 --> 00:12:32,543 which is remarkable, actually. 273 00:12:32,543 --> 00:12:33,753 There were very -- There seemed to be 274 00:12:33,753 --> 00:12:35,129 very few people that can do that, 275 00:12:35,129 --> 00:12:37,882 maybe him and Keith Richards. 276 00:12:37,882 --> 00:12:40,218 -But Downey's drugs and Rock and roll lifestyle 277 00:12:40,218 --> 00:12:42,136 is taking its toll on his relationship 278 00:12:42,136 --> 00:12:44,264 with Sarah Jessica Parker. 279 00:12:44,264 --> 00:12:46,808 -I think what was strange as well about this relationship 280 00:12:46,808 --> 00:12:49,185 between, uh, Downey and Parker 281 00:12:49,185 --> 00:12:51,479 was that she was the most straitlaced person 282 00:12:51,479 --> 00:12:52,855 you could ever imagine. 283 00:12:52,855 --> 00:12:54,649 The idea of drugs for Sarah Jessica Parker 284 00:12:54,649 --> 00:12:56,442 was just completely anathema. 285 00:12:56,442 --> 00:12:58,528 Like, that wasn't part of her life. 286 00:12:58,528 --> 00:13:00,363 -Parker's career is going strong. 287 00:13:00,363 --> 00:13:02,282 Having demonstrated her comedic skills 288 00:13:02,282 --> 00:13:03,908 playing opposite Steve Martin 289 00:13:03,908 --> 00:13:08,079 in the romantic comedy "L.A. Story." 290 00:13:08,079 --> 00:13:11,374 But her real life romance with the hard partying Downey 291 00:13:11,374 --> 00:13:14,794 is fast becoming the kind of L.A. story that ends badly 292 00:13:14,794 --> 00:13:17,005 for the sober side of the couple. 293 00:13:17,005 --> 00:13:19,757 -She deeply, deeply loved him, you know, they were going to -- 294 00:13:19,757 --> 00:13:22,260 you could sense they were going to get married at some point, 295 00:13:22,260 --> 00:13:25,179 um, until the drugs kind of broke it apart. 296 00:13:25,179 --> 00:13:27,473 I think that's where partners of his 297 00:13:27,473 --> 00:13:30,268 have thought -- they've thought that they can fix him. 298 00:13:30,268 --> 00:13:31,936 They've thought that this is someone that can, 299 00:13:31,936 --> 00:13:34,188 you know, he's ready to change. 300 00:13:34,188 --> 00:13:35,940 -You can't save an addict. You can't. 301 00:13:35,940 --> 00:13:37,483 And when you're with somebody, 302 00:13:37,483 --> 00:13:39,902 you -- everybody wants them to get better, 303 00:13:39,902 --> 00:13:42,905 wants to do something to help them. 304 00:13:42,905 --> 00:13:44,365 It's very, very painful. 305 00:13:44,365 --> 00:13:45,533 The family, the loved ones 306 00:13:45,533 --> 00:13:46,951 suffer more than the patient, 307 00:13:46,951 --> 00:13:49,329 because the patient's loaded. 308 00:13:49,329 --> 00:13:52,582 -In 1991, after seven years together, 309 00:13:52,582 --> 00:13:54,834 Parker breaks it off with Downey. 310 00:13:54,834 --> 00:13:56,836 -She tried and she tried and she tried, 311 00:13:56,836 --> 00:13:59,839 and there was lying, and there was apologies 312 00:13:59,839 --> 00:14:01,674 and all this kind of stuff, and eventually, 313 00:14:01,674 --> 00:14:04,927 just living with someone with that disease 314 00:14:04,927 --> 00:14:08,806 is just proved too much for her. 315 00:14:08,806 --> 00:14:11,267 -Less than a year after the breakup, 316 00:14:11,267 --> 00:14:13,936 Downey starts dating someone who can keep up 317 00:14:13,936 --> 00:14:17,565 with his appetite for alcohol and hard drugs. 318 00:14:17,565 --> 00:14:20,526 Singer actress Deborah Falconer. 319 00:14:20,526 --> 00:14:22,111 -Deborah had some of her own issues, 320 00:14:22,111 --> 00:14:24,864 and they were enjoying the night life 321 00:14:24,864 --> 00:14:27,700 and the kind of partying aspect of Hollywood, too. 322 00:14:27,700 --> 00:14:29,035 They met, 323 00:14:29,035 --> 00:14:31,162 they fell in love very, very quickly, 324 00:14:31,162 --> 00:14:33,331 and within just, like, just after a month, 325 00:14:33,331 --> 00:14:36,209 actually, um, they were married. 326 00:14:36,209 --> 00:14:38,169 -At the same time, Downey is just wrapping up 327 00:14:38,169 --> 00:14:39,962 filming the role that will define him 328 00:14:39,962 --> 00:14:42,215 as an actor for decades. 329 00:14:42,215 --> 00:14:43,841 -You can't be Chaplain. 330 00:14:43,841 --> 00:14:46,094 -Downey's total embodiment of Charlie Chaplin 331 00:14:46,094 --> 00:14:50,515 mesmerizes audiences, along with fellow actors and directors. 332 00:14:50,515 --> 00:14:52,517 -I loved him in "Chaplin." 333 00:14:52,517 --> 00:14:55,269 -He's so there and present and in the moment, 334 00:14:55,269 --> 00:14:57,563 If you play tennis with a good player, 335 00:14:57,563 --> 00:15:00,191 you're going to play better. 336 00:15:00,191 --> 00:15:02,527 -Some actors pick up a script, 337 00:15:02,527 --> 00:15:07,031 they read they read the lines that they're supposed to say. 338 00:15:07,031 --> 00:15:09,659 And nine times out of ten, 339 00:15:09,659 --> 00:15:12,995 they'll do similar things with the words, 340 00:15:12,995 --> 00:15:15,456 with the lines, with the intention. 341 00:15:15,456 --> 00:15:19,836 When Robert Downey Jr. gave you a line reading, 342 00:15:19,836 --> 00:15:22,922 it was, like, more different than anybody 343 00:15:22,922 --> 00:15:25,842 ever would have approached it, you know? 344 00:15:25,842 --> 00:15:28,803 -Both Michael Schultz and Gail O'Grady will not work 345 00:15:28,803 --> 00:15:32,849 with Downey until years later on the TV series, "Ally McBeal." 346 00:15:32,849 --> 00:15:35,893 But like the rest of Hollywood in 1992, 347 00:15:35,893 --> 00:15:38,938 they're witnessing the rise of a major talent 348 00:15:38,938 --> 00:15:43,568 when the industry recognizes at the 65th Academy Awards. 349 00:15:43,568 --> 00:15:45,570 -Best Actor nominee for his brilliant work in 350 00:15:45,570 --> 00:15:48,281 "Chaplain," Robert Downey Jr. 351 00:15:48,281 --> 00:15:50,616 -Although he loses to Al Pacino for his role in 352 00:15:50,616 --> 00:15:52,285 "Scent of a Woman"... 353 00:15:52,285 --> 00:15:54,912 -I'm just getting warmed up. 354 00:15:54,912 --> 00:15:58,082 -...Downey is also just getting warmed up. 355 00:15:58,082 --> 00:16:00,126 Over the next year, he wins Britain's version 356 00:16:00,126 --> 00:16:02,461 of the Academy Award. 357 00:16:02,461 --> 00:16:04,797 His first son, Indio was born, 358 00:16:04,797 --> 00:16:07,133 and Downey delivers scene-stealing moments 359 00:16:07,133 --> 00:16:10,261 in some of the decades most artistic films, 360 00:16:10,261 --> 00:16:13,097 including Robert Altman's "Short Cuts," 361 00:16:13,097 --> 00:16:15,641 and Oliver Stone's, "Natural Born Killers." 362 00:16:15,641 --> 00:16:17,560 -Wait, wait, wait. Time, cut, cut, cut. 363 00:16:17,560 --> 00:16:19,604 Cut, cut, cut, cut, cut. 364 00:16:19,604 --> 00:16:21,689 That's a [bleep] joke, right? 365 00:16:21,689 --> 00:16:24,734 -But these visible successes mask something hidden away 366 00:16:24,734 --> 00:16:27,278 inside Downey that leads him to begin using 367 00:16:27,278 --> 00:16:30,072 an even more addicting drug. 368 00:16:30,072 --> 00:16:31,699 -Robert had been, you know, he'd been doing drugs 369 00:16:31,699 --> 00:16:33,701 for a long time by 1995. 370 00:16:33,701 --> 00:16:36,704 Coke, weed, drinking everything. 371 00:16:36,704 --> 00:16:39,290 But actually, 1995 was the sort of moment 372 00:16:39,290 --> 00:16:43,044 when he did heroin for the first time. 373 00:16:43,044 --> 00:16:46,005 -The type of heroin Downey is using is black tar, 374 00:16:46,005 --> 00:16:48,424 a crude variant popular in the '90s, 375 00:16:48,424 --> 00:16:51,469 that's also known as Black Dragon. 376 00:16:51,469 --> 00:16:54,514 -Black tar heroin was readily available, 377 00:16:54,514 --> 00:16:57,141 sort of good source of heroin, 378 00:16:57,141 --> 00:17:01,562 cheap, uh, and that's what was being shot. 379 00:17:01,562 --> 00:17:03,564 -Downey will later admit that smoking heroin is 380 00:17:03,564 --> 00:17:06,400 why his performances are so subdued in the films 381 00:17:06,400 --> 00:17:08,778 that he made at the time. 382 00:17:08,778 --> 00:17:12,573 Something that did not go unnoticed by his peers. 383 00:17:12,573 --> 00:17:15,493 -He was doing "Home for the Holidays" at the time. 384 00:17:15,493 --> 00:17:18,746 So he was making this movie which Jody Foster was directing. 385 00:17:18,746 --> 00:17:22,208 And Jodie Foster remembers writing this letter to him, 386 00:17:22,208 --> 00:17:24,919 just saying, "Don't do this," basically. 387 00:17:24,919 --> 00:17:27,797 Like, "You've got all these gifts. You've got this ability. 388 00:17:27,797 --> 00:17:30,424 You could do anything you want in this town. 389 00:17:30,424 --> 00:17:34,428 But you're taking heroin, you're ruining it. 390 00:17:34,428 --> 00:17:36,013 You're giving yourself an opportunity 391 00:17:36,013 --> 00:17:38,891 to destroy everything that you've built." 392 00:17:38,891 --> 00:17:40,977 He didn't listen to her, he was in the throes of 393 00:17:40,977 --> 00:17:42,812 heavy addiction by that point. 394 00:17:42,812 --> 00:17:45,314 So he wasn't ready to listen to anybody. 395 00:17:45,314 --> 00:17:52,613 ♪♪ 396 00:17:52,613 --> 00:17:56,409 -The first time I knew about serious trouble 397 00:17:56,409 --> 00:17:58,494 involving Robert Downey Jr. 398 00:17:58,494 --> 00:18:04,250 was when my editor said that Downey had been arrested. 399 00:18:04,250 --> 00:18:07,253 -Downey gets pulled over for driving 70 miles per hour 400 00:18:07,253 --> 00:18:11,173 on the winding Pacific Coast Highway, just outside of Malibu. 401 00:18:11,173 --> 00:18:14,010 -He's pulled over for speeding, 402 00:18:14,010 --> 00:18:17,096 for suspected driving under the influence. 403 00:18:17,096 --> 00:18:20,308 Cop finds cocaine, 404 00:18:20,308 --> 00:18:25,938 finds heroin, and finds a 357 magnum. 405 00:18:25,938 --> 00:18:28,316 -What starts with a cop pulling him over 406 00:18:28,316 --> 00:18:30,526 will lead to a judge throwing in the book 407 00:18:30,526 --> 00:18:32,528 and will deliver Robert Downey Jr. 408 00:18:32,528 --> 00:18:35,114 to the brink of self destruction. 409 00:18:36,449 --> 00:18:38,993 -Things are going from bad to worse. 410 00:18:44,999 --> 00:18:46,208 -By 1996, Robert Downey Jr. is no longer 411 00:18:46,208 --> 00:18:47,668 a Hollywood bad boy. 412 00:18:47,668 --> 00:18:49,629 He's now being cast as a man 413 00:18:49,629 --> 00:18:52,423 whose life is dangerously out of control. 414 00:18:52,423 --> 00:18:54,258 -At this point, uh, 415 00:18:54,258 --> 00:18:58,346 he is possibly a danger to himself and to the community, 416 00:18:58,346 --> 00:19:01,474 if and when he drives under the influence. 417 00:19:01,474 --> 00:19:03,684 -Suddenly, he's light in the full view of the world's press 418 00:19:03,684 --> 00:19:05,895 as someone who was caught with all these drugs 419 00:19:05,895 --> 00:19:08,606 under the influence and with a gun. 420 00:19:08,606 --> 00:19:11,651 -The DUI drug and gun possession charges, 421 00:19:11,651 --> 00:19:13,653 put a somber and contrite looking Downey 422 00:19:13,653 --> 00:19:15,946 in front of a judge. 423 00:19:15,946 --> 00:19:17,657 -After that first court appearance, 424 00:19:17,657 --> 00:19:19,825 Robert Downey Jr. doesn't go off to jail. 425 00:19:19,825 --> 00:19:22,828 He doesn't go off to prison. He's essentially out on bail. 426 00:19:22,828 --> 00:19:24,664 So another court hearing is set. 427 00:19:24,664 --> 00:19:27,458 And he is let go. 428 00:19:27,458 --> 00:19:30,169 -It leaves him free to continue smoking heroin 429 00:19:30,169 --> 00:19:33,923 and freebasing cocaine on a near daily basis. 430 00:19:33,923 --> 00:19:37,426 -When Robert Downey Jr. is left to his own devices, 431 00:19:37,426 --> 00:19:39,345 he finds trouble. 432 00:19:39,345 --> 00:19:42,264 And in this case, God bless him, 433 00:19:42,264 --> 00:19:45,726 it was the weirdest kind of trouble you can imagine. 434 00:19:46,894 --> 00:19:49,438 -Just a month after the first court appearance, 435 00:19:49,438 --> 00:19:51,399 police receive a 911 call 436 00:19:51,399 --> 00:19:54,777 from Downey's neighbor in Malibu. 437 00:19:54,777 --> 00:19:56,862 -[ Snoring ] 438 00:19:58,280 --> 00:20:03,035 -His neighbor goes into the child's bedroom, 439 00:20:03,035 --> 00:20:05,746 and who is asleep in the kids room, 440 00:20:05,746 --> 00:20:08,124 but Robert Downey Jr. 441 00:20:08,124 --> 00:20:09,917 -They were just putting one of the kids to bed, 442 00:20:09,917 --> 00:20:12,586 and they found a lump in the bed. 443 00:20:12,586 --> 00:20:17,133 And it was Downey Jr. who had walked into the wrong house 444 00:20:17,133 --> 00:20:20,302 and had climbed into this child's bed. 445 00:20:20,302 --> 00:20:21,887 -Snoozing away. 446 00:20:21,887 --> 00:20:23,806 -Media quickly labeled this latest chapter 447 00:20:23,806 --> 00:20:27,268 in the Downey saga the "Goldilocks Incident." 448 00:20:27,268 --> 00:20:29,019 -You know, who's sleeping in my bed? 449 00:20:33,482 --> 00:20:35,943 -The neighbor calls 911 and says, you know, 450 00:20:35,943 --> 00:20:37,987 "You're not going to believe this, but Robert Downey Jr. 451 00:20:37,987 --> 00:20:39,822 is asleep in my kid's bed. 452 00:20:45,703 --> 00:20:47,997 -Even in Hollywood, this is strange. 453 00:20:47,997 --> 00:20:49,999 And you listen to the 911 call, 454 00:20:49,999 --> 00:20:52,918 you can literally hear Robert Downey Jr. snoring 455 00:20:52,918 --> 00:20:54,420 in the background. 456 00:21:02,636 --> 00:21:05,723 -He said the cab took him to the wrong house. 457 00:21:05,723 --> 00:21:07,475 I don't think that's true, really. 458 00:21:07,475 --> 00:21:10,227 I think it was just too much drinking, too much drugs, 459 00:21:10,227 --> 00:21:13,230 and "I want to go home, I don't want to go to bed." 460 00:21:13,230 --> 00:21:15,608 -So, of course, everyone's joking about it. 461 00:21:15,608 --> 00:21:17,485 "Oh, Robert Downey Jr. broke into somebody's house, 462 00:21:17,485 --> 00:21:20,070 fell asleep in the bed, ha ha." 463 00:21:20,070 --> 00:21:23,324 -Luckily, Downey's neighbors don't press charges, 464 00:21:23,324 --> 00:21:26,160 but the incident still makes headlines. 465 00:21:26,160 --> 00:21:30,706 And even worse, it violates the probation of his first DUI. 466 00:21:30,706 --> 00:21:32,416 -After the Goldilocks Incident, 467 00:21:32,416 --> 00:21:36,504 it -- it became this kind of nonstop trail of --- 468 00:21:36,504 --> 00:21:38,881 of one court date after another. 469 00:21:38,881 --> 00:21:42,092 He's missing court-mandated drug tests, 470 00:21:42,092 --> 00:21:44,345 uh, he's continually screwing up. 471 00:21:44,345 --> 00:21:46,305 -Months later in 1996, 472 00:21:46,305 --> 00:21:48,724 the court orders Downey to attend a treatment center 473 00:21:48,724 --> 00:21:50,559 in Marina Del Rey. 474 00:21:50,559 --> 00:21:53,312 But it lacks the one thing Downey craves. 475 00:21:53,312 --> 00:21:55,022 More drugs. 476 00:21:55,022 --> 00:21:56,774 The moment he gets into this rehab, 477 00:21:56,774 --> 00:21:59,151 he's already looking at ways that he can get away. 478 00:21:59,151 --> 00:22:02,613 So, you know, he figures out a way 479 00:22:02,613 --> 00:22:05,783 a window to climb out of. 480 00:22:05,783 --> 00:22:08,452 -He's wearing his hospital pants 481 00:22:08,452 --> 00:22:10,287 and a Hawaiian shirt and slippers, 482 00:22:10,287 --> 00:22:12,915 and he sneaks out into the night. 483 00:22:12,915 --> 00:22:15,918 -He kind of stumbles his way into a surf shop nearby. 484 00:22:15,918 --> 00:22:17,836 The people recognize him in the surf shop 485 00:22:17,836 --> 00:22:21,090 and call him a cab, and he's away. 486 00:22:21,090 --> 00:22:24,718 -It just again, you want to kind of laugh about it. 487 00:22:24,718 --> 00:22:28,222 It's a comic scene, perhaps, but at the same time, 488 00:22:28,222 --> 00:22:29,974 it's like, my God, you know, 489 00:22:29,974 --> 00:22:33,519 is this how badly you want those drugs 490 00:22:33,519 --> 00:22:37,523 that you just can't even spend two days in rehab? 491 00:22:37,523 --> 00:22:40,276 -Downey tries to play his addictions for laughs 492 00:22:40,276 --> 00:22:42,486 when he returns to "Saturday Night Live" 493 00:22:42,486 --> 00:22:44,905 as a guest host that November. 494 00:22:44,905 --> 00:22:47,491 -I did have a really interesting summer, though. 495 00:22:47,491 --> 00:22:51,662 Here's me picking up a little prescription from my pharmacist. 496 00:22:51,662 --> 00:22:53,872 Uh, this next one is of me when I stayed at this 497 00:22:53,872 --> 00:22:56,250 terrific guest house in Malibu. 498 00:22:56,250 --> 00:22:59,753 It was actually two doors down from my own house, but you know. 499 00:22:59,753 --> 00:23:02,047 -But if laughter is the great healer, 500 00:23:02,047 --> 00:23:03,382 it doesn't work on Downey, 501 00:23:03,382 --> 00:23:05,968 who shows no intention of sobering up. 502 00:23:05,968 --> 00:23:08,429 -He wasn't ready to go through that, 503 00:23:08,429 --> 00:23:10,931 even though people were starting to say, "Look, man, 504 00:23:10,931 --> 00:23:13,142 like, things are going off the rails big time here. 505 00:23:13,142 --> 00:23:16,312 Like you're struggling. Something needs to change." 506 00:23:16,312 --> 00:23:19,356 He -- He just wasn't ready to accept it. 507 00:23:19,356 --> 00:23:22,067 -One person who is ready for a change is Downey's wife, 508 00:23:22,067 --> 00:23:24,403 Deborah Falconer. 509 00:23:24,403 --> 00:23:27,740 She serves him with separation papers. 510 00:23:27,740 --> 00:23:29,867 -I think there was a lot of relationship issues 511 00:23:29,867 --> 00:23:33,412 and personal issues that were starting to press on him. 512 00:23:33,412 --> 00:23:36,415 -After another DUI and drug possession charge, 513 00:23:36,415 --> 00:23:40,044 along with his multiple probation violations, 514 00:23:40,044 --> 00:23:44,089 the Malibu judge Lawrence Mira tries to scare Downey straight. 515 00:23:44,089 --> 00:23:47,718 -The judge says, "Look, I-I just have no choice here. 516 00:23:47,718 --> 00:23:49,845 You know, I'm running out of patience, 517 00:23:49,845 --> 00:23:51,221 I'm running out of options. 518 00:23:51,221 --> 00:23:54,016 And the judge throws Downey in jail. 519 00:23:54,016 --> 00:23:56,602 In jail for 113 days. 520 00:23:58,020 --> 00:24:01,523 -Downey gets sent to the L.A. County Central Men's jail, 521 00:24:01,523 --> 00:24:04,652 home to violent offenders and rat-infested cells. 522 00:24:06,737 --> 00:24:08,572 Unlike the other prisoners, however, 523 00:24:08,572 --> 00:24:10,574 the judge lets Downey leave the jail 524 00:24:10,574 --> 00:24:11,992 to act in a movie. 525 00:24:11,992 --> 00:24:13,702 But getting chauffeured by sheriff deputies 526 00:24:13,702 --> 00:24:16,121 to Paramount Studios doesn't sit well 527 00:24:16,121 --> 00:24:18,540 with Downey's fellow inmates. 528 00:24:20,084 --> 00:24:22,878 -If they see another inmate getting special treatment, 529 00:24:22,878 --> 00:24:24,254 this makes it more difficult 530 00:24:24,254 --> 00:24:26,507 for us to control their behavior 531 00:24:26,507 --> 00:24:29,760 in a jail institutional setting. 532 00:24:29,760 --> 00:24:33,222 -It's a lesson Downey learns the hard way. 533 00:24:34,848 --> 00:24:36,892 -Downey got attacked. 534 00:24:36,892 --> 00:24:39,561 He got his face bashed in, 535 00:24:39,561 --> 00:24:41,981 and it was so serious that, you know, 536 00:24:41,981 --> 00:24:43,565 he had to have medical attention 537 00:24:43,565 --> 00:24:47,069 and even plastic surgery to kind of fix his nose. 538 00:24:47,069 --> 00:24:54,910 So yes, it was a very, very rough stretch in County jail. 539 00:24:54,910 --> 00:24:57,663 -After his release, Downey looks for work in movies. 540 00:24:57,663 --> 00:25:02,418 Any movies to help finance his continuing addiction. 541 00:25:02,418 --> 00:25:04,378 -And the problem is is that he was still 542 00:25:04,378 --> 00:25:07,172 a kind of semi-successful movie star at the time. 543 00:25:07,172 --> 00:25:09,299 So he was still doing these films. 544 00:25:09,299 --> 00:25:11,719 -Deputy, get me out of these cuts right now. 545 00:25:11,719 --> 00:25:13,554 -It's a problem because Downey's ability 546 00:25:13,554 --> 00:25:16,807 to keep working may be stopping him from getting clean. 547 00:25:16,807 --> 00:25:19,101 -My experience has been that returning to work 548 00:25:19,101 --> 00:25:21,353 and not prioritizing the recovery 549 00:25:21,353 --> 00:25:22,896 is what takes them out. 550 00:25:22,896 --> 00:25:25,733 You can stop the revolving door of rehab 551 00:25:25,733 --> 00:25:27,985 by spending enough time in treatment. 552 00:25:27,985 --> 00:25:30,571 And that's what celebrities need to do. 553 00:25:33,490 --> 00:25:38,203 -By 1999, no matter how much compassion 554 00:25:38,203 --> 00:25:41,206 anybody has for Robert Downey Jr., 555 00:25:41,206 --> 00:25:44,043 It's run out. 556 00:25:44,043 --> 00:25:46,837 -After failing to show up for his mandatory drug test 557 00:25:46,837 --> 00:25:50,174 and with more parole violations since leaving County Jail, 558 00:25:50,174 --> 00:25:53,218 Downey is back in front of Judge Mira. 559 00:25:53,218 --> 00:25:56,221 This time, armed with a team of celebrity lawyers, 560 00:25:56,221 --> 00:25:58,390 including Robert Shapiro, 561 00:25:58,390 --> 00:26:02,561 best known for successfully co-defending OJ Simpson. 562 00:26:02,561 --> 00:26:05,272 -Robert Downey Jr. is led into court. 563 00:26:05,272 --> 00:26:07,524 He's in an orange jump suit. 564 00:26:07,524 --> 00:26:10,360 His hands are shackled. 565 00:26:10,360 --> 00:26:14,406 You would have thought he's been treated like a serial killer. 566 00:26:14,406 --> 00:26:15,991 -In front of a media packed court room, 567 00:26:15,991 --> 00:26:18,869 Downey pleads his case. 568 00:26:18,869 --> 00:26:22,581 -And that's when he makes the famous line about the gun 569 00:26:22,581 --> 00:26:24,833 in his mouth, his finger on the trigger. 570 00:26:24,833 --> 00:26:27,252 -It's like I have a shotgun in my mouth, 571 00:26:27,252 --> 00:26:28,879 and I've got my finger on the trigger, 572 00:26:28,879 --> 00:26:30,839 and I like the taste of the gun metal. 573 00:26:30,839 --> 00:26:32,633 -It's his way of explaining 574 00:26:32,633 --> 00:26:35,219 that he's not just addicted to the drugs, 575 00:26:35,219 --> 00:26:37,846 but he's addicted to the danger. 576 00:26:37,846 --> 00:26:39,765 -But this is no court room drama, 577 00:26:39,765 --> 00:26:42,893 and Mira isn't an actor playing a part. 578 00:26:42,893 --> 00:26:46,104 He's a judge who's seen enough of Downey's performance. 579 00:26:46,104 --> 00:26:47,981 -The judge just threw up his hands and said, 580 00:26:47,981 --> 00:26:49,733 "Look, Mr. Downey..." 581 00:26:49,733 --> 00:26:51,485 -"I don't think we have any alternatives here. 582 00:26:51,485 --> 00:26:52,945 We have used them all." 583 00:26:52,945 --> 00:26:55,322 -"I have to send you to state prison. 584 00:26:55,322 --> 00:26:57,199 And not just to prison, I go to send you to prison 585 00:26:57,199 --> 00:27:00,619 for three years." 586 00:27:00,619 --> 00:27:03,914 There was a stunned silence. 587 00:27:03,914 --> 00:27:08,669 He didn't seem to understand why he was sitting there in court 588 00:27:08,669 --> 00:27:10,754 facing prison time, 589 00:27:10,754 --> 00:27:13,757 going off to the same prison holding Charles Manson. 590 00:27:21,056 --> 00:27:22,641 -I'm living my dreams. -In July of 2000, 591 00:27:22,641 --> 00:27:25,144 already 12 months into his three year sentence, 592 00:27:25,144 --> 00:27:27,521 a not especially contrite Robert Downey Jr. 593 00:27:27,521 --> 00:27:29,940 gives an interview to "NBC news" 594 00:27:29,940 --> 00:27:31,817 from his cell block in California's 595 00:27:31,817 --> 00:27:33,569 Corcoran State prison. 596 00:27:33,569 --> 00:27:35,612 -Party! Hey, smile. 597 00:27:35,612 --> 00:27:38,907 You're on Corcoran camera. 598 00:27:38,907 --> 00:27:40,701 No, I'm sorry, go ahead. 599 00:27:42,161 --> 00:27:46,623 -Despite his manic energy, Downey not doing easy time. 600 00:27:46,623 --> 00:27:48,876 -This is not a country club. 601 00:27:48,876 --> 00:27:50,752 It's out in the middle of nowhere, 602 00:27:50,752 --> 00:27:54,256 it is surrounded by fences and razor wire, 603 00:27:54,256 --> 00:27:56,842 and there are guards with guns. 604 00:27:56,842 --> 00:27:58,677 These are, you know, 605 00:27:58,677 --> 00:28:01,263 tough criminals, even in the minimum 606 00:28:01,263 --> 00:28:02,890 to moderate security wing, 607 00:28:02,890 --> 00:28:05,726 and just on the other side of the fence 608 00:28:05,726 --> 00:28:07,644 is the high security part. 609 00:28:07,644 --> 00:28:09,688 That's where Charles Manson is. 610 00:28:09,688 --> 00:28:12,191 That's where serial killers are. 611 00:28:12,191 --> 00:28:15,944 -Prison culture is really, uh, something 612 00:28:15,944 --> 00:28:17,738 that's hard to explain. 613 00:28:17,738 --> 00:28:21,116 But... 614 00:28:21,116 --> 00:28:22,784 It's opened my eyes to a lot. 615 00:28:22,784 --> 00:28:25,954 -For somebody who has arguably not hurt 616 00:28:25,954 --> 00:28:29,374 another person except himself, this is hard time. 617 00:28:29,374 --> 00:28:32,210 -I'm just, uh -- I'm just waiting to do the next -- 618 00:28:32,210 --> 00:28:34,129 next right thing. 619 00:28:34,129 --> 00:28:36,215 I know I'm not doing it my way when I leave. 620 00:28:36,215 --> 00:28:39,092 -He's in a dorm-like setting. 621 00:28:39,092 --> 00:28:41,929 He gets the top bunk because nobody wants the top bunk. 622 00:28:41,929 --> 00:28:46,725 He also has to deal with the fact that he's famous. 623 00:28:46,725 --> 00:28:49,186 -Unlike his stint in the L.A. County jail, 624 00:28:49,186 --> 00:28:51,772 Downey gets no days off to shoot a movie. 625 00:28:51,772 --> 00:28:55,859 -I've taken it upon myself to, uh, see that, 626 00:28:55,859 --> 00:28:58,737 if anything, I get slightly less preferential treatment, 627 00:28:58,737 --> 00:29:00,948 'cause sometimes even just having things even 628 00:29:00,948 --> 00:29:03,867 would seem not fair. 629 00:29:03,867 --> 00:29:05,827 -Downey proves to be a model prisoner, 630 00:29:05,827 --> 00:29:07,913 and the courts decide to release him 631 00:29:07,913 --> 00:29:10,791 after he served 15 months of his sentence. 632 00:29:10,791 --> 00:29:13,460 -He does manage to get released from Corcoran 633 00:29:13,460 --> 00:29:16,964 a little bit earlier and kind of adjourns to another rehab. 634 00:29:16,964 --> 00:29:19,716 And this is his kind of one big shot 635 00:29:19,716 --> 00:29:21,843 it feels like to change his life completely, 636 00:29:21,843 --> 00:29:23,679 and you would have thought he would. 637 00:29:23,679 --> 00:29:27,182 -He's stayed clean, he's gone to his classes. 638 00:29:27,182 --> 00:29:29,768 He's done his counseling, 639 00:29:29,768 --> 00:29:34,356 and he immediately gets a job on a show called "Ally McBeal." 640 00:29:34,356 --> 00:29:36,984 -I have a child. 641 00:29:36,984 --> 00:29:39,778 [ Cartoons play on TV ] 642 00:29:39,778 --> 00:29:42,072 -What? -When Robert Downey Jr. 643 00:29:42,072 --> 00:29:44,366 was added to the cast, 644 00:29:44,366 --> 00:29:47,244 he was just recently out of prison, 645 00:29:47,244 --> 00:29:48,912 but nobody cared about that. 646 00:29:48,912 --> 00:29:51,123 -He's seven years old. 647 00:29:51,123 --> 00:29:52,374 [ TV turns off ] 648 00:29:52,374 --> 00:29:54,293 -Why didn't you tell me this before? 649 00:29:54,293 --> 00:29:57,629 -Everybody was elated. They were excited. 650 00:29:57,629 --> 00:29:59,464 My name is Michael Schultz. 651 00:29:59,464 --> 00:30:03,385 I'm a director who happened to be lucky enough 652 00:30:03,385 --> 00:30:05,178 to work with Robert Downey Jr. 653 00:30:05,178 --> 00:30:07,639 for a brief moment in "Ally McBeal." 654 00:30:10,559 --> 00:30:11,852 -Created by David E. Kelley 655 00:30:11,852 --> 00:30:13,729 and starring Calista Flockhart, 656 00:30:13,729 --> 00:30:15,564 "Ally McBeal's" in it's fourth season 657 00:30:15,564 --> 00:30:18,025 when Downey becomes her new love interest, 658 00:30:18,025 --> 00:30:20,110 playing a man with a complicated past 659 00:30:20,110 --> 00:30:22,904 and deep commitment issues. 660 00:30:22,904 --> 00:30:25,407 -Merry Christmas. -Everybody loved 661 00:30:25,407 --> 00:30:28,201 his creative genius. 662 00:30:28,201 --> 00:30:30,746 And so it was like a spark plug. 663 00:30:30,746 --> 00:30:34,541 -Downey injects life into the latter part 664 00:30:34,541 --> 00:30:37,961 of this, uh -- this -- the run of this show. 665 00:30:37,961 --> 00:30:42,174 -Gail O'Grady gets cast to play Downey's ex-wife on the show. 666 00:30:42,174 --> 00:30:45,385 -We did a scene where we were in an ice cream parlor 667 00:30:45,385 --> 00:30:48,013 and I was putting whipped cream on the end of his nose 668 00:30:48,013 --> 00:30:52,726 and Calista walks in and gets jealous 669 00:30:52,726 --> 00:30:55,812 and dumps a whole ice cream sundae on his head. 670 00:30:59,691 --> 00:31:01,151 -Are you done? -Mm-hmm. 671 00:31:01,151 --> 00:31:03,695 -Good. -We did it a few times. 672 00:31:03,695 --> 00:31:06,365 We definitely did it more than once. 673 00:31:06,365 --> 00:31:08,325 And Robert's a good sport. 674 00:31:08,325 --> 00:31:14,289 ♪♪ 675 00:31:14,289 --> 00:31:15,874 I'm Gail O'Grady 676 00:31:15,874 --> 00:31:17,834 Once upon a time, I got to play 677 00:31:17,834 --> 00:31:20,754 Robert Downey Jr.'s ex-wife... 678 00:31:20,754 --> 00:31:22,339 Hello. -Hi. 679 00:31:22,339 --> 00:31:24,674 -...On "Ally McBeal." 680 00:31:24,674 --> 00:31:28,220 Working with Robert, like, every once in a while, 681 00:31:28,220 --> 00:31:30,472 you come across actors 682 00:31:30,472 --> 00:31:36,937 that transport you into another place. 683 00:31:38,188 --> 00:31:39,773 -While Downey's performance helps bolster 684 00:31:39,773 --> 00:31:41,942 the show's ratings, working so soon 685 00:31:41,942 --> 00:31:45,028 after prison isn't helping Downey stay sober. 686 00:31:45,028 --> 00:31:47,739 Something Dr. Drew sees all too often 687 00:31:47,739 --> 00:31:50,200 with celebrity patients. 688 00:31:50,200 --> 00:31:52,411 -They need to not work. 689 00:31:52,411 --> 00:31:54,913 They need to focus on their recovery. 690 00:31:54,913 --> 00:31:56,873 He went back and did television 691 00:31:56,873 --> 00:31:59,418 and then relapsed immediately after that. 692 00:31:59,418 --> 00:32:00,961 -And by that Thanksgiving, 693 00:32:00,961 --> 00:32:03,338 three months after his release from prison, 694 00:32:03,338 --> 00:32:05,882 he gets arrested again for drug possession 695 00:32:05,882 --> 00:32:08,427 at a resort in Palm Springs. 696 00:32:08,427 --> 00:32:10,846 -The officers were able to search the room. 697 00:32:10,846 --> 00:32:12,973 Uh, during the search, they found a small amount 698 00:32:12,973 --> 00:32:14,975 of methamphetamine and cocaine, 699 00:32:14,975 --> 00:32:17,853 uh, which was consistent with personal use amounts. 700 00:32:17,853 --> 00:32:19,646 -Even though everyone would think 701 00:32:19,646 --> 00:32:21,857 that coming out of Corcoran and you'd go, "You know what? 702 00:32:21,857 --> 00:32:24,109 I'm turning over a new leaf, that's not me anymore." 703 00:32:24,109 --> 00:32:26,653 That pretty much was him continuing on. 704 00:32:26,653 --> 00:32:28,697 Like, he didn't change all that much. 705 00:32:28,697 --> 00:32:30,365 -Downey's court date for the arrest 706 00:32:30,365 --> 00:32:31,908 gets set for the following spring, 707 00:32:31,908 --> 00:32:34,661 and if convicted, would be sent back to prison 708 00:32:34,661 --> 00:32:36,371 for four more years. 709 00:32:36,371 --> 00:32:38,165 But professionally, David Kelley 710 00:32:38,165 --> 00:32:40,250 is willing to let the incident slide 711 00:32:40,250 --> 00:32:41,835 because the drugs have yet to interfere 712 00:32:41,835 --> 00:32:44,504 with his performance set. 713 00:32:44,504 --> 00:32:48,884 In fact, they sign him on for eight more episodes. 714 00:32:50,886 --> 00:32:56,224 -David Kelley chose to keep Robert Downey 715 00:32:56,224 --> 00:33:00,103 because he -- he loved him. 716 00:33:00,103 --> 00:33:03,231 He loved him as an actor, you know? 717 00:33:03,231 --> 00:33:06,818 And when Robert was on the set it was all about the work. 718 00:33:06,818 --> 00:33:10,322 He was totally into character. 719 00:33:10,322 --> 00:33:12,491 He was totally focused. 720 00:33:12,491 --> 00:33:19,623 -I know that he showed up on that set and did his work. 721 00:33:19,623 --> 00:33:22,125 And he was professional. 722 00:33:22,125 --> 00:33:29,257 He's one of those actors that when you stand across from him, 723 00:33:29,257 --> 00:33:35,639 there's an extra sprinkling of something special. 724 00:33:37,057 --> 00:33:40,518 -That extra sprinkle earns Downey a Golden Globe Award 725 00:33:40,518 --> 00:33:43,939 for his performance on the show in January 2001. 726 00:33:43,939 --> 00:33:45,815 -Hi. Thanks. 727 00:33:45,815 --> 00:33:50,070 I just wanted to, uh, share this with my fellow parolees, 728 00:33:50,070 --> 00:33:51,863 I mean, nominees. 729 00:33:51,863 --> 00:33:54,616 And just say that this really means a lot. 730 00:33:54,616 --> 00:33:56,952 [ Applause ] 731 00:33:56,952 --> 00:33:59,246 -The award is bittersweet. 732 00:33:59,246 --> 00:34:02,541 Just two days later, Downey receives divorce papers 733 00:34:02,541 --> 00:34:04,334 from Deborah Falconer, 734 00:34:04,334 --> 00:34:06,378 who's demanding that the actor be allowed 735 00:34:06,378 --> 00:34:09,923 only supervised visits with their son. 736 00:34:09,923 --> 00:34:14,427 And Downey's relapses become more frequent and more obvious. 737 00:34:14,427 --> 00:34:17,514 -I'd come to work and Robert is supposed to be, 738 00:34:17,514 --> 00:34:20,809 uh, in my first scene. 739 00:34:23,520 --> 00:34:26,982 Then my AD comes and says, 740 00:34:26,982 --> 00:34:30,318 "We can't find Robert. 741 00:34:30,318 --> 00:34:32,571 We sent somebody over to his house. 742 00:34:32,571 --> 00:34:35,865 He's not in his house. He's M.I.A." 743 00:34:38,493 --> 00:34:41,329 -Just a few months after the Golden Globes 744 00:34:41,329 --> 00:34:44,040 in April of 2001, 745 00:34:44,040 --> 00:34:47,877 Robert Downey Jr. is arrested again. 746 00:34:47,877 --> 00:34:50,589 He's wandering the streets of Culver City, 747 00:34:50,589 --> 00:34:53,258 barefooted on drugs. 748 00:34:53,258 --> 00:34:56,720 ♪♪ 749 00:34:56,720 --> 00:35:01,308 And, professionally, that's it. Okay? 750 00:35:01,308 --> 00:35:05,312 The people at "Ally McBeal" gave him another chance, 751 00:35:05,312 --> 00:35:07,647 he won them a Golden Globe, he helped their ratings, 752 00:35:07,647 --> 00:35:11,318 but he's got a few episodes left to shoot, and that's it. 753 00:35:11,318 --> 00:35:14,321 They just -- They just can't. 754 00:35:14,321 --> 00:35:17,073 -Downey's character is supposed to marry "Ally McBeal" 755 00:35:17,073 --> 00:35:18,408 in the season finale. 756 00:35:18,408 --> 00:35:20,160 -Instead, David Kelley 757 00:35:20,160 --> 00:35:22,787 has no choice but to fire him. 758 00:35:22,787 --> 00:35:24,956 -Because of his relapse, 759 00:35:24,956 --> 00:35:29,502 they had to figure a way to write him out of the series, 760 00:35:29,502 --> 00:35:32,505 and it ended pretty abruptly. 761 00:35:32,505 --> 00:35:34,633 -He dropped off a note. 762 00:35:34,633 --> 00:35:38,887 -I think David was really saddened 763 00:35:38,887 --> 00:35:42,390 and Calista was brokenhearted, you know, 764 00:35:42,390 --> 00:35:45,685 that, um, 765 00:35:45,685 --> 00:35:50,190 he was not going to be able to complete the show. 766 00:35:50,190 --> 00:35:54,778 -Robert Downey Jr. does avoid more prison time 767 00:35:54,778 --> 00:35:56,988 as long as he goes back into rehab, 768 00:35:56,988 --> 00:35:59,532 but in April of 2001, 769 00:35:59,532 --> 00:36:02,452 despite his immense talent, 770 00:36:02,452 --> 00:36:06,665 it is financially impossible to hire him. 771 00:36:06,665 --> 00:36:09,125 As far as Hollywood is concerned, he's toast. 772 00:36:14,089 --> 00:36:15,757 -In July of 2001, 773 00:36:15,757 --> 00:36:18,134 California's proposition 36 774 00:36:18,134 --> 00:36:19,844 diverts non-violent drug offenders 775 00:36:19,844 --> 00:36:22,097 into rehab instead of prison. 776 00:36:22,097 --> 00:36:24,849 It essentially decriminalizes drug possession 777 00:36:24,849 --> 00:36:27,018 when it's for personal use. 778 00:36:27,018 --> 00:36:30,814 The change in law saves Downey from another stint behind bars. 779 00:36:30,814 --> 00:36:32,524 But when it comes to acting, 780 00:36:32,524 --> 00:36:35,443 there's not an insurance company in America 781 00:36:35,443 --> 00:36:38,363 that will let Downey step onto another movie set. 782 00:36:38,363 --> 00:36:40,281 -People still wanted to work with him, 783 00:36:40,281 --> 00:36:44,160 but the insurance companies just said no. Like, no. 784 00:36:44,160 --> 00:36:46,788 It's not just that they wouldn't insure Downey, 785 00:36:46,788 --> 00:36:51,334 they wouldn't insure a show that he was working on. 786 00:36:51,334 --> 00:36:52,877 -In the language of addiction, 787 00:36:52,877 --> 00:36:56,297 Downey has finally hit rock bottom. 788 00:36:56,297 --> 00:36:58,842 -His marriage has collapsed. 789 00:36:58,842 --> 00:37:05,056 He is broke, and he has no way to make a living. 790 00:37:05,056 --> 00:37:06,808 -But it's his forced unemployment 791 00:37:06,808 --> 00:37:08,935 that may help save Downey. 792 00:37:08,935 --> 00:37:13,231 He finally has nothing but time to focus on his sobriety. 793 00:37:13,231 --> 00:37:16,985 -The most vivid memory I have of Robert Downey Jr. 794 00:37:16,985 --> 00:37:21,448 is when he was getting very serious about his recovery. 795 00:37:21,448 --> 00:37:26,077 And he disappeared. He finally got the message. 796 00:37:26,077 --> 00:37:28,163 He focused on his recovery. 797 00:37:28,163 --> 00:37:32,125 -And he stays sober and he passes the drug tests. 798 00:37:32,125 --> 00:37:36,004 And he impresses the judge and the prosecutors and everybody 799 00:37:36,004 --> 00:37:37,505 he has to impress. 800 00:37:37,505 --> 00:37:40,300 He's clean for maybe the first time 801 00:37:40,300 --> 00:37:43,219 in a long time. 802 00:37:43,219 --> 00:37:47,724 So the only question is, will he get a job? 803 00:37:47,724 --> 00:37:52,604 What he needed was a guardian angel who would believe in him, 804 00:37:52,604 --> 00:37:55,940 and he found that person in Mel Gibson. 805 00:37:58,067 --> 00:37:59,194 -In 2003, 806 00:37:59,194 --> 00:38:00,820 when no one else will, 807 00:38:00,820 --> 00:38:03,114 his old co-star from "Air America" 808 00:38:03,114 --> 00:38:05,492 offers Downey the lead role in a film called 809 00:38:05,492 --> 00:38:07,076 "The Singing Detective." 810 00:38:07,076 --> 00:38:08,703 [ Gunshots ] 811 00:38:10,663 --> 00:38:12,165 [ Woman screams ] 812 00:38:14,751 --> 00:38:17,170 To get around the insurance company's boycott 813 00:38:17,170 --> 00:38:20,089 of Downey, Gibson personally underwrites the movie 814 00:38:20,089 --> 00:38:22,675 with his own money. 815 00:38:22,675 --> 00:38:24,636 -Now, remember he's richer than God, 816 00:38:24,636 --> 00:38:29,557 but Gibson himself covered the insurance costs. 817 00:38:29,557 --> 00:38:33,269 He vouched for Downey to show up. 818 00:38:33,269 --> 00:38:36,231 -Despite the film's mostly negative reviews by critics, 819 00:38:36,231 --> 00:38:39,817 Gibson's generosity resuscitates Downey's career 820 00:38:39,817 --> 00:38:43,029 by giving Downey the chance to win over the only audience 821 00:38:43,029 --> 00:38:44,489 that really matters. 822 00:38:44,489 --> 00:38:46,491 The insurance companies. 823 00:38:46,491 --> 00:38:48,576 -He reproved to Hollywood 824 00:38:48,576 --> 00:38:50,662 that he was a brilliant actor 825 00:38:50,662 --> 00:38:54,290 who can transcend even mediocre material. 826 00:38:54,290 --> 00:38:56,876 -I'm here, to help you, but you have to trust me. 827 00:38:56,876 --> 00:38:59,379 -That same year, he appears opposite Halle Berry 828 00:38:59,379 --> 00:39:02,799 in the psychological horror flick "Gothika." 829 00:39:02,799 --> 00:39:06,010 -On that set, he met and fell in love with 830 00:39:06,010 --> 00:39:07,720 the love of his life. 831 00:39:09,764 --> 00:39:12,225 -Susan Levin is a producer on the film. 832 00:39:12,225 --> 00:39:14,561 In 2003, when they start dating, 833 00:39:14,561 --> 00:39:18,231 she has one simple stipulation. 834 00:39:18,231 --> 00:39:20,191 -She said quite early on, like, 835 00:39:20,191 --> 00:39:23,444 "If you do drugs, I will break up with you." 836 00:39:23,444 --> 00:39:25,738 And I think the fantastic thing for -- 837 00:39:25,738 --> 00:39:27,866 for their relationship is that he was ready to hear it. 838 00:39:27,866 --> 00:39:31,661 He was finally ready to understand what that meant. 839 00:39:31,661 --> 00:39:33,871 He realized he'd found someone special. 840 00:39:33,871 --> 00:39:37,292 And it's been a relationship now that's lasted 20 years. 841 00:39:37,292 --> 00:39:40,712 I mean, in Hollywood terms, that's practically a lifetime. 842 00:39:40,712 --> 00:39:42,422 -Two years after getting remarried, 843 00:39:42,422 --> 00:39:44,716 Downey lands the role that transforms him 844 00:39:44,716 --> 00:39:46,384 from an award-winning actor 845 00:39:46,384 --> 00:39:48,636 into a global superstar. 846 00:39:48,636 --> 00:39:50,221 -Let's face it, this is not the worst thing 847 00:39:50,221 --> 00:39:52,098 you've got me doing. -I think what makes 848 00:39:52,098 --> 00:39:53,850 Iron Man and Robert Downey Jr. 849 00:39:53,850 --> 00:39:55,977 such a good marriage of material and person 850 00:39:55,977 --> 00:39:59,230 is that this is someone who actually is quite similar. 851 00:39:59,230 --> 00:40:02,233 -Robert's grown up in the public eye. 852 00:40:02,233 --> 00:40:04,193 Everything good and bad that's happened in his life, 853 00:40:04,193 --> 00:40:05,612 everybody's seen. 854 00:40:05,612 --> 00:40:07,113 And Tony Stark, he's a guy 855 00:40:07,113 --> 00:40:08,781 who's also grown up in the public eye. 856 00:40:08,781 --> 00:40:10,783 -Iron Man in the comics is an alcoholic. 857 00:40:10,783 --> 00:40:13,661 He's someone who's kind of glib and silly and funny. 858 00:40:13,661 --> 00:40:16,414 He's not a kind of serious superhero. 859 00:40:16,414 --> 00:40:19,626 And that's not what Robert Downey Jr. is either. 860 00:40:19,626 --> 00:40:22,295 He's someone who's loud, funny, quirky, 861 00:40:22,295 --> 00:40:25,715 and also has these substance abuse issues in the past. 862 00:40:25,715 --> 00:40:27,258 -"Iron Man" is the first movie 863 00:40:27,258 --> 00:40:28,760 and what will become Marvel's 864 00:40:28,760 --> 00:40:31,596 $30 billion cinematic universe. 865 00:40:31,596 --> 00:40:33,973 And as the face of that franchise, 866 00:40:33,973 --> 00:40:37,560 it makes Downey one of the richest actors on the planet. 867 00:40:37,560 --> 00:40:41,564 -What makes Robert Downey Jr.'s life so interesting 868 00:40:41,564 --> 00:40:43,983 is things happened off camera, 869 00:40:43,983 --> 00:40:47,737 on camera, we see it, you know, in only snippets. 870 00:40:47,737 --> 00:40:49,572 And I think that makes it more mysterious. 871 00:40:49,572 --> 00:40:52,909 That makes it more kind of exciting to dig into. 872 00:40:52,909 --> 00:40:55,286 -We're just having fun and getting started. 873 00:40:55,286 --> 00:40:57,538 -And Downey finally digs deeper into his own life 874 00:40:57,538 --> 00:40:59,499 when he produces a documentary 875 00:40:59,499 --> 00:41:02,251 called "Senior" about his complex relationship 876 00:41:02,251 --> 00:41:05,171 with his father who's dying from Parkinson's disease 877 00:41:05,171 --> 00:41:07,715 during its filming in 2020. 878 00:41:07,715 --> 00:41:11,094 -There's a scene when he's going up to see his father 879 00:41:11,094 --> 00:41:14,472 in the apartment, and, you know, his dad's dying. 880 00:41:14,472 --> 00:41:16,474 And Downey's just like a father's son. 881 00:41:16,474 --> 00:41:18,017 You know, he's not a superstar. 882 00:41:18,017 --> 00:41:19,519 He's concerned about his dad 883 00:41:19,519 --> 00:41:21,479 still working out a lifetime 884 00:41:21,479 --> 00:41:24,691 of issues, but there for his father. 885 00:41:24,691 --> 00:41:27,735 -The documentary also gives his father an opportunity 886 00:41:27,735 --> 00:41:30,697 to acknowledge how that early exposure to drugs 887 00:41:30,697 --> 00:41:33,866 affected his son's entire life. 888 00:41:33,866 --> 00:41:36,494 -His father did regret later on, I think, you know, 889 00:41:36,494 --> 00:41:38,413 there was an idea that his dad was like, 890 00:41:38,413 --> 00:41:39,956 "Yeah, take this. Who cares?" 891 00:41:39,956 --> 00:41:41,916 But, actually, later on in his life, 892 00:41:41,916 --> 00:41:44,085 um, his dad did express a lot of regret for that 893 00:41:44,085 --> 00:41:46,921 and realized that it was kind of a bad thing to do. 894 00:41:46,921 --> 00:41:48,923 -I thought it was cute to let him smoke it, and all that. 895 00:41:48,923 --> 00:41:51,551 It was an idiot move on our part, the lot of us. 896 00:41:51,551 --> 00:41:53,594 To share that with our children. 897 00:41:53,594 --> 00:41:55,304 I'm just happy he's here. 898 00:41:55,304 --> 00:41:58,850 -[ Chuckles ] -That's all. 899 00:41:58,850 --> 00:42:03,229 -In 2021, Downey's father dies at the age of 85. 900 00:42:03,229 --> 00:42:06,399 But he leaves behind a son who was finally coming to his own 901 00:42:06,399 --> 00:42:10,278 and whose self-sabotaging days seem very much behind him. 902 00:42:10,278 --> 00:42:13,698 With this best supporting actor win at the 2024 Oscars, 903 00:42:13,698 --> 00:42:16,576 Downey, now sober for 22 years, 904 00:42:16,576 --> 00:42:18,870 is finally recognized for the talent 905 00:42:18,870 --> 00:42:21,414 he spent the first two decades of his life 906 00:42:21,414 --> 00:42:23,541 drowning out with drugs. 907 00:42:23,541 --> 00:42:26,169 -I'd like to thank my terrible childhood 908 00:42:26,169 --> 00:42:29,213 and the academy in that order. 909 00:42:29,213 --> 00:42:33,176 -Robert Downey Jr. is the ultimate redemption story. 910 00:42:33,176 --> 00:42:37,138 Nobody has fallen so far 911 00:42:37,138 --> 00:42:39,223 and been so low 912 00:42:39,223 --> 00:42:41,684 and come back so big 913 00:42:41,684 --> 00:42:43,352 than Robert Downey Jr. 914 00:42:43,352 --> 00:42:45,730 -Robert is truly an inspiration. 915 00:42:45,730 --> 00:42:48,649 He's one of the most extraordinary recoveries 916 00:42:48,649 --> 00:42:52,278 you could possibly imagine, and he continues to inspire others. 917 00:42:52,278 --> 00:42:55,615 He is humble in recovering. 918 00:42:55,615 --> 00:42:59,160 He's -- He's a model for how this should be done. 919 00:42:59,160 --> 00:43:01,204 It gives everyone hope. 920 00:43:01,204 --> 00:43:03,915 -There are these kind of different waves 921 00:43:03,915 --> 00:43:06,334 of Downey Jr. 922 00:43:06,334 --> 00:43:11,297 Certainly, from a kind of hero's journey, he is one for the ages, 923 00:43:11,297 --> 00:43:14,467 like, he's someone who seemed destined for greatness 924 00:43:14,467 --> 00:43:16,385 from a very early age. 925 00:43:16,385 --> 00:43:19,222 And then it all seems to come unraveled. 926 00:43:19,222 --> 00:43:22,767 Like, you could never see any way back from where he was. 927 00:43:22,767 --> 00:43:26,771 And yet, somehow, he's managed to claw his way back 928 00:43:26,771 --> 00:43:28,606 into the public consciousness and become one of 929 00:43:28,606 --> 00:43:30,483 the biggest actors of all time. 930 00:43:30,483 --> 00:43:34,946 -The genius is so unstoppable 931 00:43:34,946 --> 00:43:38,533 that he rose from the ashes 932 00:43:38,533 --> 00:43:41,327 and became this superstar. 933 00:43:41,327 --> 00:43:42,703 -He's a good person, 934 00:43:42,703 --> 00:43:45,665 and he just gets better, 935 00:43:45,665 --> 00:43:47,750 like fine wine. 936 00:43:47,750 --> 00:43:53,214 And I think that's why we wanted him to succeed. 937 00:43:54,006 --> 00:43:56,300 [ Cheers and applause ] 938 00:43:56,300 --> 00:44:04,142 ♪♪