The Backstory: Robert Downey Jr. reinvents himself

Robert Downey Jr. has had an amazing career—huge movies as a young actor and even bigger ones in his 40s and 50s. But in between, he spent serious time in prison on drug charges. How did he find sobriety?

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
When you think about Robert Downey Junior, maybe you think
about his earlier flicks like Air America or Chaplain, What
a great movie. But you probably think about his title
role in the two thousand and eight flick Iron Man,
in which he played Tony Stark, and after that all
the Iron Man roles in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. But
in between those two halves of his career, he was

(00:22):
a heroin addict who spent time in prison. I'm Patti Steele.
Robert Downey Junior remakes his life. That's next on the backstory.
The backstory is back. Robert Downey Junior began life as
a Hollywood insider, sort of. He was actually born in
New York City on April fourth, nineteen sixty five. His

(00:46):
dad was the avant garde filmmaker Robert Downey Senior, and
his mom actress Elsie Ann Ford. His childhood was completely unconventional.
He grew up on his father's film sets, where Robert
Senior was immersed in the counterculture of the nineteen seventies.
They moved from New York City several places in New
York City to Woodstock, New York, to Connecticut, and then

(01:08):
to New Mexico, finally heading back to California. All before
Robert was in high school. His mother was an alcoholic
and his father a drug addict who wanted to include
his son in everything he did. Robert Junior's first movie
role at the age of five was in his dad's
movie Pound, where he played a puppy about to be euthanized.

(01:30):
He had appearances in seven more of his father's flicks
over the years, but his dad was also the ultimate
party guy, and he wanted to include his son in
that part of his life as well. Robert Junior told
a story about how his dad frequently left him a
bit of pot on the nightstand next to his bed,
letting him know it was a gift because he loved him.

(01:53):
Robert Junior was eight the first time his dad did that.
By the mid nineteen eighties, he was a member of
them from his Hollywood bratpack, making movies like Weird Science,
Back to School, and Less Than Zero. In nineteen eighty five,
he became a regular cast member on Saturday Night Live,
just for a year or so, and during all this time,

(02:15):
as his star was rising, he became more and more
of a major partier. By the nineteen nineties, he was
making a ton of movies like Chaplain, but he was
also going in and out of rehab and occasionally jail.
Then in June of nineteen ninety six, Robert was speeding
down Sunset Boulevard in LA when cops pulled him over.

(02:36):
They searched his car and they found heroin, cocaine, and crack,
along with an unloaded three point fifty seven magnum handgun.
He was hauled in charged with drug possession and DUI.
He only was sentenced to probation with mandatory drug testing,
but just a month after that, he pulled a really
crazy stunt. He trespassed into a neighbour's house while high

(03:01):
and fell asleep in their child's bed, and of course
the media piled on. Despite court ordered rehab, the next year,
he missed a mandatory drug test and he got six
months in the La County jail. Then in nineteen ninety nine,
there was another missed drug test. This time he got
a three year sentence at a state prison and treatment facility.

(03:24):
His lawyers, including attorney to the stars Robert Shapiro remember
him from the oj trial, tried to get the sentence eased,
but Robert was locked up. After fifteen months, he was
granted early release plus parole and probation, and he launched
himself back into his career. He got a role in
the popular TV show Ally McBeal. He won a Golden

(03:46):
Globe for that, but he also fell off the wagon.
In November two thousand, Robert Downey Junior was arrested for
the last time in Palm Springs for possession of cocaine
and valium. A few months later, he was found wandering
barefoot and stoned in Culver City. That cost him his
job on Ally McBeal, and he seemed headed downhill. He

(04:10):
decided he was going to get serious about getting sober.
In later interviews, he said jail was the most dehumanizing
experience of his life. He said, imagine one day you're
sleeping in two thousand dollars a night hotel rooms and
the next day you're locked up in a penitentiary. It
changes your thinking about everything. But he said that experience

(04:33):
was pivotal in his journey toward recovery. So how did
he do it well? He says it was a multifaceted strategy,
including therapy, twelve step programs, meditation, yoga and certain kinds
of martial arts. He also credits his wife, Susan Levin,
who gave him an ultimatum about his sobriety. Finally, Robert

(04:57):
began to rebuild his life and career. Being cast as
Tony Stark in two thousand and eight's Iron Man solidified
his comeback and signaled his resilience. After that, he became
a lynchpin in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, reprising the Ironman
role in ten films over the next ten years. In

(05:18):
two thousand and eight, he was named by Time magazine
as one of the one hundred most influential people in
the world. From twenty thirteen through twenty fifteen, Forbes listed
him as the highest paid actor in Hollywood. He's won
Golden Globes, Emmys, and BAFTA Awards, as well as an
Academy Award for twenty twenty three's Oppenheimer. His journey shows

(05:42):
us the possibility of overcoming even the most intense personal battles.
He continues to share his story in the hope of
inspiring other addicts find their own version of a sober lifestyle.
He says, a lot of folks struggle with their identity.
I feel like they never quite find their path and
that can often lead them back to the comfort of addiction.

(06:04):
He encourages them to focus on their goals and aspirations
and to be grateful for every experience and what it
can teach you about yourself and your personal strength. Not
everybody's a movie star, but there is a place for
all of us. You just gotta find it. I hope

(06:27):
you like the Backstory with Patty Steele. I would love
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On Facebook, It's Patty Steele and on Instagram Real Patty Steele.
I'm Patty Steele. The Backstory is a production of iHeartMedia,

(06:49):
Premiere Networks, the Elvis Durand Group, and Steel Trap Productions.
Our producer is Doug Fraser, our writer Jay Kushner. We
have new episodes every Tuesday and Friday. Feel free to
reach out to me with comments and even story suggestions
on Instagram at Real Patty Steele and on Facebook at
Patty Steele. Thanks for listening to the back Story with

(07:10):
Patty Steele. The pieces of history you didn't know you
needed to know.