Robert Downey Jr. is best known for his Iron Man role in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and it is a legacy that he cannot seem to escape despite having done numerous critically acclaimed roles. As the actor gears up for the next chapter of his career and life, it seems he still finds it hard to let go of his time in Marvel.
In a ‘pre-Oppenheimer‘ interview with filmmaker Christopher Nolan, Downey had some puzzling answers to give when the topic turned to DCU and DC characters. His ambiguous answers have led to speculations about his opinion on the DC characters and mythos, leading to questions like does the Iron Man star not understand DC or does he carry a hidden dislike for what Stan Lee referred to as Distinguished Competition.
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Does The Iron Man Star Hate James Gunn’s DCU? His Ambiguous Answers Reveal He Doesn’t Get DC
Robert Downey Jr. is one of the biggest stars in the history of cinema when it comes to comic book adaptations. The actor who is regarded to have laid the foundation for the billion-dollar-worth Marvel Cinematic Universe recently made some ambiguous comments regarding his rival comic-book franchise which has made several speculate that he might not be too fond of the DC universe.
While on WIRED’s Ask the Web’s Most Searched Questions, the conversation turned to DCU when Christopher Nolan began speaking about how it was to work with Cillian Murphy on the Dark Knight trilogy. While Nolan was talking, Downey whispered Scarecrow (Cillian’s character) and he stated the reasoning behind his whispering,
“I whispered because I have a problem talking about DC characters. I don’t know if I was programmed or not, but I was in this room with a lot of flashing lights once. Long story, thanks Kevin.”
Robert Downey Jr Once Told “F**k DC Comics”
As to what Robert Downey Jr. meant by his above-mentioned comment remains a mystery, Downey’s disregard for DC is well known. Back when the first Iron Man was released, Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight trilogy was the only major competition. So when Downey was asked by the HuffPost about what he felt about the trilogy, he candidly stated,
“My whole thing is that that I saw ‘The Dark Knight’. I feel like I’m dumb because I feel like I don’t get how many things that are so smart. It’s like a Ferrari engine of storytelling and script writing and I’m like, ‘That’s not my idea of what I want to see in a movie.'”
RDJ is smart, witty, humorous, intelligent, and all the other synonyms of the word ‘smart’ undoubtedly, but surprisingly the actor felt he was not smart enough to understand Nolan’s The Dark Knight and so he very frankly and candidly told the DC comics to ‘F**k Off’.
“I loved ‘The Prestige’ but didn’t understand ‘The Dark Knight’. Didn’t get it, still can’t tell you what happened in the movie, what happened to the character and in the end they need him to be a bad guy. I’m like, ‘I get it. This is so high brow and so f**king smart, I clearly need a college education to understand this movie.’ You know what? F-ck DC comics. That’s all I have to say and that’s where I’m really coming from.”
His statement from back then really explains that RDJ might not get the DC universe, especially Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy, which seems ironic for he went on to work with the brilliant filmmaker in Oppenheimer, a movie which makes you scratch your head like a monkey. Suppose being in front of the screen and behind the screen are two different things after all.
The Dark Knight Is Why Robert Downey Jr Doesn’t Have An Oscar
Robert Downey Jr. has received two Academy Awards nominations till now but during his second nomination back in 2009, the actor was close to winning. Having been nominated for Best Supporting Actor for his role in Tropic Thunder, he was exceptional in the role.
However, the actor unfortunately lost to Heath Ledger, who was also nominated in the same category for his role as Joker in Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight. Ledger, no doubt, played one of the best versions of the popular comic book character and even after the numerous actors who have portrayed the character, his portrayal has continued to remain on top.
While The Dark Knight may have been the reason why Downey doesn’t have an Oscar today, he might have a chance to win an Oscar today thanks to Nolan’s box-office blockbuster Oppenheimer for it is being highly speculated that the actor might get a nomination in the same category at the 2024 Academy Awards.
