Robert Downey Jr. has been known worldwide as the actor who played Iron Man. Although the actor is reveling in the success of his professional life, it wasn’t always this way. Talking about a past life that Downey Jr. is embarrassed to remember, the Sherlock Holmes actor talked about his earlier Hollywood days.
Stating that Mel Gibson was the one who came to support Downey Jr. when he was down on his luck, the actor felt grateful for the act of kindness. It wasn’t long before the Dolittle actor had to repay the favor when the world turned against Mel Gibson as he became one of the most hated men in Hollywood.
Robert Downey Jr. and Mel Gibson.Mel Gibson Put A Roof Over Robert Downey Jr.’s Head
Before the fame that Robert Downey Jr. accumulated after Iron Man in 2008, the actor had been down on his luck for quite some time. When the actor had been arrested multiple times for the trade and usage of various types of drugs, no one in Hollywood seemed to support Robert Downey Jr. back on his feet.
Mel Gibson as William Wallace in Braveheart (1995).
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It was none other than the Braveheart actor that picked Downey Jr. back up and kept him fed by giving him the lead role in a movie that was meant for Mel Gibson.
“When I couldn’t get sober, he told me to not give up hope and urged me to find my faith. It didn’t have to be his or anyone else’s as long as it was rooted in forgiveness.”
The Oppenheimer actor further continued,
“He cast me for the lead of a movie that was actually developed for him, and he kept a roof over my head and he kept food on the table.”
After getting some sense of stability in his life, Robert Downey Jr. went on to become one of the best actors and superhero known to mankind with the role of Iron Man. In the following years, it was Mel Gibson who found himself on the other side of the table, when Hollywood turned its back on him. Robert Downey Jr. being a well-known personality by then, came to aid his old friend.
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When Robert Downey Jr. Saved Mel Gibson In Hollywood
Robert Downey Jr. as Iron Man in Avengers: Endgame.
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Back in the early days, Mel Gibson was charged with hitting Oksana Grigorieva while her child Lucia was 2 months old. In what later turned into a courtroom case, Hollywood turned its back on Mel Gibson. In his defense, Gibson had stated that the slap was meant to snap Oksana Grigorieva out of a fit of hysteria. It was Robert Downey Jr. who came to the rescue of The Passion of Christ actor. Robert Downey Jr. said,
“I humbly ask that you join me, unless you are completely without sin, in which case, you’ve picked the wrong f*cking industry…in forgiving my friend his tresspasses and offering him the same clean slate you gave me and allowing him to continue his great and ongoing contribution to our collective art without shame.”
The statement seemed to work since Mel Gibson was then cast into several Hollywood movies to regain his status as a veteran actor. The actor has currently five upcoming projects that are in various stages of development. As for Robert Downey Jr., the actor will be seen in the Christopher Nolan magnum opus Oppenheimer when it releases on 21st July 2023 in theaters.
Source: YouTube
