Among all the characters he has portrayed on screen, Robert Downey Jr. is arguably the most well-known and closest to his Marvel Cinematic Universe character, Tony Stark/Iron Man.
But that pales in comparison to the vicious fight Downey Jr. got into with probably a more terrifying person in one of their lesser-known films than the Marvel ones. The Dolittle star was thrilled to be cast as Terry Donager in the 1999 film Black and White, where he would attack former professional boxer Mike Tyson. But the Iron Man star’s constant questions to the director, James Toback, about whether or not he had informed Tyson about the fight also suggested how worried he was about his own safety.
Gaby Hoffmann, Allan Houston, Jared Leto, Scott Caan, Claudia Schiffer, Brooke Shields, and Bijou Phillips were among the other actors who starred in Black and White.
Robert Downey Jr.’s Nerve-Wracking Situation While Engaging With Mike Tyson
This happened in 1999 when the two prominent figures were cast in James Toback’s Black and White. Mike Tyson played himself in the film, which starred Robert Downey Jr. as the homosexual spouse of documentary filmmaker Sam Donager (Brooke Shields). The director shared with Live Journal that he thought Tyson and Downey Jr. were a perfect fit for the role. He stated:
“My intuition is that interesting people are more interesting right after they have suffered. It opens them up even further. I felt that both of them would be very good in the movie and good together.”
The filmmaker took note of the Iron Man actor’s response when he inquired about the role he would like to play:
“‘Why don’t I play the gay husband of Brooke Shields?’ I said, ‘Good. Why don’t you play the gay husband of Brooke Shields who hits on Mike Tyson?’
However, Downey Jr. did not realize until the very last moment whether Toback had informed Tyson that the Oppenheimer star was going to hit him. It is possible that he was worried about his life before making a move on the former professional boxer. The Bugsy writer remarked:
“No. Downey said, ‘What if he gets angry?’ I said, ‘I would assume he would.’ He said, ‘How far do you want me to take it?’ I said, ‘Take it until he responds in the extreme.’ Downey responded, ‘What if he kills me?’ I said, ‘Well, I haven’t thought about that. I think it’s unlikely—no better than a 5% chance.”
More About Robert Downey Jr.’s Black and White
Not only did James Tomback direct, but he also served as a writer for Black and White. Along with Brooke Shields and Mike Tyson, a long list of other celebrities were cast in the film, including Ben Stiller, Kidada Jones, James Handy, Robert Downey Jr., Jared Leto, Scott Caan, Claudia Schiffer, and Bijou Phillips. Michael B. Jordan also appeared in his film debut. Tyson performed as himself, and Shields adopted the role of Sam Donager.
According to some, however, Black and White‘s behind-the-scenes activities garnered greater media attention than the movie itself. At the time, Shields, 50, discussed the film’s production with Entertainment Weekly, saying:
”There were a lot of things that happened that were nonprofessional and continued to happen. It was pure decadence. But you can’t be in a situation like that and fight it… I’ve never been so basically uncomfortable. You never, ever knew what was going to happen.”
The $5 million film, which took place in New York City, focused on Sam Shields, a documentary filmmaker, and her husband, Terry Donager (Downey Jr.), who got into a physical fight with Tyson that Sam recorded on camera.
Black and White is available to rent on Apple TV.
