Robert Downey Jr. had a long haul for this year’s Comic Con. On Friday he presented Sherlock Holmes, so by the time Saturday evening came around for Iron Man 2, he either got his second wind or plowed through pure exhaustion. Whichever it was, we reaped the benefits with Iron Man 2 talk.
Crave Online: Do you enjoy working a crowd when you’re on a panel?
Robert Downey Jr: Yesterday, for Sherlock Holmes, I became love dizzy and I thought I might lose my footing, so I was transported by it. Today, I had my legs under me a little better. Jon and I worked out a bit, which to me is a huge deal because usually Jon likes going, “You say something funny and then I’ll come back. Let’s go!” And, he pulls me out on stage, which to me is a little anxiety provoking. Today, we actually worked out a bit, so that was nice.
Crave Online: What was the trickiest thing to work out the second time?
Robert Downey Jr: What does everybody best offer? How do we make sure that all these insanely gifted people who are used to being number one on their own call sheet, who have come to join us to play, have a real beginning, middle and end? How do we make them pertinent to a story that actually could have easily been told, just continuing along the same lines we were, bringing in another non-descript bad guy and kicking ass? The trickiest part was living up to the ambition.
Crave Online: In the first film, there was a show-stopping moment when your heart was taken out, where there are no effects and it’s just all acting. Is there a moment like that in this film?
Robert Downey Jr: A big through-line for this has to do with what did after the credits last time, when Nick Fury comes in and says, “You’re part of something bigger than you know.” Jon and I are both big Writer’s Journey and Joseph Campbell fans. Pretty much everyone is. But, there is something to be said about legacy and there’s something that’s missing in him. And, obviously, what’s kept him alive is a miniaturized version of something his father created, but things aren’t always as they seem and someone arrives on the scene. How bad-ass was Mickey Rourke with those whips? I don’t quite understand but it seems like it’s similarly powered. All I know is that Jon really made some smart moves, in the things he decided to prioritize. To me, this film really is about Tony’s secret journey into his deepest fears, his sense of obligation, his sense of legacy with his father, a sense of brotherhood with Rhodey and his ongoing deep love and respect for Pepper.
Crave Online: Is there a love triangle between Tony and Pepper, and Tony and the Black Widow?
Robert Downey Jr: We essentially started off saying it’s a love triangle, and then we realized that love triangle is done in these superhero movies all the time. What we wanted to do was something just a little bit freakier than that, and I believe we have succeeded. Black Widow is a great character because she is not what she appears to be. It was a great opportunity. I don’t even know if it’s so much a love triangle. Pepper is exactly what she appears to be, except there’s a lot more going on under the surface, and that’s brought to bear, this time.
Crave Online: How surprised are you that this Iron Man franchise has changed people’s perceptions of you as an actor?
Robert Downey Jr: It’s pretty miraculous. But, in the realm of miracles, I think it’s probably a two or three because it’s a movie industry thing. Nonetheless, it’s mind-blowing to me because I’d always felt like I wanted to and could do something like this. It’s wild.
Crave Online: You had such a great year with Iron Man and Tropic Thunder, and now you have Sherlock Holmes and Iron Man 2. Are you feeling it? Is the Robert Downey, Jr. renaissance in full swing?
Robert Downey Jr: The best thing I can do, and I think this is the thing that’s been my saving grace, is consider myself a worker amongst workers. When I deviate from that, things just don’t turn out so sweet for me.
Robert Downey Jr: At a certain point, probably in act one or two Tony is approached by Nick Fury who is wondering what it's like for him to not have any back up. Rhodey, Cheadle's thing has always been, like, “Hey, come try to work with us.” We see that he's under pressure from the senate to essentially turn over the weapon that he designed when he was under contract to them. But the truth is that he didn't design it for a government contract. He designed it to save his own life. So he has an argument there. The funny thing is in saying what I'm saying is that I'm going right back to our original vetting sessions six months ago when we were not just reminding ourselves of the obvious but trying to think about if this were really happening, what would be the most interesting and entertaining and honest way to move forward. We took the risk of exploring, that basically Tony goes on a much more perilous journey this time than he did when all he had to do was save his own ass.
