Robert Downey Jr. has won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for Oppenheimer. 2023 was marked by the blockbuster hits of Barbie and Oppenheimer, popularly known as the Barbenheimer, after the two films became a cultural phenomenon. Although the Margot Robbie starrer became the frontrunner with its box office collection, Christopher Nolan’s biographical thriller has been making waves for potentially being the biggest winner at the 2024 Oscars.
However, despite that, Ryan Gosling, who earned a Best Supporting Actor nomination for Barbie, recently claimed that the biographical thriller rode on the coattails of the fantasy comedy, only to lose the Oscar to the Oppenheimer star Robert Downey Jr.
Robert Downey Jr. Wins His First Oscar For Oppenheimer
Robert Downey Jr., who earned widespread acclaim for his portrayal of Lewis Strauss in the 2023 film Oppenheimer, has won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor at the 96th Academy Awards. This marks the 58-year-old actor’s first Oscar win following his previous nominations for Chaplin (1992) and Tropic Thunder (2008).
Downey Jr. has been a frontrunner for Best Supporting Actor, having previously won a Golden Globe, Bafta, and Screen Actors Guild for the 2023 film. His triumph at the Academy Awards came amidst stiff competition, with fellow nominees, including Sterling K. Brown for American Fiction, Robert De Niro for Killers of the Flower Moon, Ryan Gosling for Barbie, and Mark Ruffalo for Poor Things.
The actor thanked his “terrible childhood and the Academy, in that order” for his win along with his wife, Susan Downey. “I’d like to thank my…veterinarian, I meant wife Susan Downey,” he said in his acceptance speech.
He further stated, “She found me a snarling refuge pet and loved me back to life. That’s why I’m here.” Downey Jr. also shared that he needed the film more than it needed him before thanking Christopher Nolan and his castmates, including Cillian Murphy, Emily Blunt, and Matt Damon.
Ryan Gosling’s Snarky Comments Lose Its Edge Following Robert Downey Jr.’s Victory
Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt took the Barbenheimer phenomenon to the 96th Academy Awards stage while presenting a special tribute to the stunt performers. The actors, who are set to co-star in the upcoming film The Fall Guy, playfully remarked on the rivalry between their 2023 films, Barbie and Oppenheimer, which opened on the same day in theatres last year.
“I’m just happy that we can finally put this Barbenheimer rivalry aside,” Gosling said before adding, “You’re on the tail end because you rode ‘Barbie’s’ coattails all summer.” The actor also asserted it as a reason why it was termed as “Barbenheimer and not Oppenarbie.”
Blunt, however, did not hold back as she highlighted Oppenheimer’s success throughout the 2024 award season. “The way this award season has turned out, it wasn’t that much of a rivalry,” she remarked, emphasizing the film’s leading wins at the 2024 Golden Globes to the BAFTA Film Awards.
Gosling and Blunt were also nominated for Best Supporting Actor and Best Supporting Actress, respectively. However, Blunt lost the Academy Award to The Holdovers star Da’Vine Joy Randolph, and Gosling lost to the Oppenheimer star Downey Jr.
Oppenheimer is available to stream on Peacock TV.
Barbie is available to stream on Max.
