Robert Downey Jr. has cemented a strong legacy who literally rose from rock-bottom to gain worldwide fame with his Iron Man role in the MCU. Apart from his superhero role, he continued showcasing his versatile acting skills in different projects ranging from comedy to drama. Although his acting prowess is enough to convince you that his personality is what his character shows on-screen, in reality, he’s quite a goofy one.
While his off-screen persona is more of a chirpy one, it would surprise many that the Oscar winner once received a weird nickname from his co-star after he acted too “preppy” on set.
Robert Downey Jr. Recounted His Story on Getting Weird Nickname
In a 2013 interview with Interview Magazine, the Oppenheimer actor reflected on his acting journey in Hollywood which started way before the Iron Man saga. He recounted his time on True Believer where he got to work with acclaimed actor James Woods.
Downey Jr. couldn’t agree more when asked for his confirmation on Woods giving him a “Binky” nickname. He revealed,
That’s because he thought I was preppy. Or because he said that I wore more silk than it took to land all the troops at Normandy.
He shared what exactly led him to be called Binky, stating,
He would always make fun of me because I’d come to the set in a suit at 8 a.m. just because I bought all this sh-t and wanted to wear it. So he thought I was foppish, and he called me Binky.
He recalled an instance when people on set referred to him by that name instead of his name.
Pretty soon I’d go for lunch and they’d say, ‘What do you want today, Binky?’ It was one of those Preppy Handbook appropriate male names. But I’m just happy because it means he liked me.
While his great fashion style would have been due to his portrayal in the 1980s movie, working with Woods turned out to be a great acting lesson for the former.
He once recalled how he immersed himself completely into the character, which sometimes becomes a hassle but ended up learning a life-long lesson with what his co-star did.
James Woods Slapped Robert Downey Jr. Which Became His ‘Personal Breakthrough’
In the same interview, Robert Downey Jr. recounted a sequence when he was on “the edge of not acting” in search of something great to happen. However, he was still far from getting what his co-star wanted from him, leading him to eventually break out of his character.
Since the Shark star didn’t want his character to get distracted, he eventually ended up slapping the Sherlock Holmes star. He shared,
He got this weird look and cocked his head a little bit to the side, and he just reached over and f–king cracked me right in the middle of the take.
Things would have been completely different if the timing wasn’t right however the Avengers: Endgame star took the cue as he trusted his co-star enough to go with the flow. He knew what his co-star wanted him to understand,
He [James Woods] was saying, ‘Here is the point where you can’t let the door close,’ and he put his foot in the door by slapping me, and something great happened. I don’t know if they used it or not, but to me it was a personal breakthrough.
For Downey Jr., his co-star’s actions were “putting the flag in the ground” which kept his focus from wavering, which is a big lesson that he utilized in his career for years.
True Believer revolves around Eddie Dodd (Woods) a former civil rights lawyer turned cynical defense attorney who takes the case of Shu Kai Kim on the convincing of his young idealistic associate, Roger Baron (Downey Jr).
True Believer is available on Apple TV.
