Baftas 2024: Robert Downey Jr wins ‘Best Supporting Actor’
Actor Robert Downey Jr has won the Bafta for ‘Best Supporting Actor’ for his effort in Christopher Nolan’s historical biographical drama Oppenheimer, pipping the likes of Jacob Elordi, Paul Mescal and Ryan Gosling to the award.
Downey Jr played the United States Atomic Energy Commission member Lewis Strauss, who has something of a personal rivalry with the father of the atomic bomb, J. Robert Oppenheimer, played by Cillian Murphy.
Massively influenced by British cinema, Downey Jr took to the stage with great excitement, stating: “I’m going to tell you the entirety of my life in 30 seconds. This is the story, start the clock. When I was 15, I wanted to be Peter O’Toole. When I was 25, I worked for Richard Attenborough with Anthony Hopkins; when I was 35, I finally understood why Dickie thought Tony would be a better role model for me than Peter”.
Continuing, he added, “Chris Nolan suggested I attempt an understated approach as a last-ditch effort to perhaps resurrect my dwindling credibility”.
In Far Out’s review of Oppenheimer, we wrote, “Let’s face it, Nolan consistently delivers in whatever project he takes on; he knows his vision and style and creates a positive, intimate environment for his actors to provide their best work.”
The review continued, “But with Oppenheimer, he hasn’t just delivered an entertaining, thought-provoking movie as he had done with his previous efforts, but a thoroughly important one that informs even the most sheltered of us about the global situation we find ourselves in today.”
Downey Jr has joined a prestigious list of recent ‘Best Supporting Actor’ Bafta winners, including Barry Keoghan, Daniel Kaluuya and Brad Pitt.
Has Robert Downey Jr won an Oscar?
Robert Downey J has never won an Oscar but has previously been nominated for three awards. He got the ‘Best Actor’ nod for his performance in the 1992 Richard Attenborough film Chaplin, a ‘Best Supporting Actor’ nomination for Tropic Thunder and a third for ‘Best Supporting Actor’ for Oppenheimer.
He has won a handful of other awards, though, including two BAFTAs, a Critics’ Choice Movie Award and four Golden Globes.
Check out the trailer for Oppenheimer below.
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