The Movie That Saved Robert Downey Jr Wasn't Iron Man 

This movie was also a great comeback for Val Kilmer, he was hilarious and his chemistry with Downey Jr was fucking amazing, its sad now he has throat cancer because this movie reminds me of why I loved the guy in the first place, always charismatic and excellent along Downey jr

One of his most overlooked performances for me would have to be Charlie Bartlett. A highly underrated teen comedy in which he plays the role of the high school principal who clashes with the titular character and provides one of the greatest life lessons in a teen comedy I have ever heard.

The dialog in KKBB kills me to this day, and Val just destroys. Underrated film

I loved kiss kiss bang bang. This was a role he will never do again due to his status

This movie is SSSSOOOO great - as is Shane Black's "Nice Guys". Hollywood is a cruel unforgiving place, but I think everyone there and in his fan group is thrilled to see Downey make such a stunning comeback both in his career and his personal life.

I don’t care what anyone says. Tropic Thunder resurrected not only Downey, but that of Tug Speedman as well.

Shane Black makes amazing movies that just can't find an audience until they're out of theaters unfortunately.

RDJ also does fantastic work in his supporting roles during his problem/rebound era: Wonder Boys (2000); Good Night, and Good Luck (2005); and A Scanner Darkly (2006) come to mind. The guy is an all-round talent.

Robert Downey Jr is one of the few celebrities I have followed throughout his life. I don't like watching/reading/hearing about celebs' personal lives, but this guy was a household favorite. My mother absolutely adored him, and we watched most of his movies as a family. She has always kept up on celebrity gossip, so I always knew about the latest arrest - and I remember when we all thought he was done. A few years later, my then-girlfriend and I watched KKBB and absolutely loved it. The chemistry between the two main stars is wonderful, and the way the movie seemed to be written just for Robert Downey Jr stoked feelings that he was back. Then, of course, Iron Man was announced - and we just knew he was on to big things from there on out. The side-tragedy that he played in Oppenheimer was refreshing in its reach for him as an actor, and it shows that he may just pull off the aging acting role perfectly.

There are feel people on Earth with the on screen charisma of Robert Downey Jr. He seems so ALIVE somehow, like he can see everything. I don´t know how to explain it, but I´ve never seen anyone else with that same quality.

I heard the reason Downey was Favreau''s pick for Iron Man was that his real world life mimicked that of the fictional Tony Stark. Who better to portray him?

He really did turn it around, especially with the help of those around him. But let's face it, being the son of a rich famous person and the lack of social media in the 80's, 90's and even early 2000's, is what salvaged his career and life.

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang is truly one of Shane Black’s greatest films next to The Nice Guys. Both imo are underrated masterpieces.

As a huge RDjr fan, I’m upset that “Less than Zero” was completely ignored. RDjr was a superstar in the late 90’s. That’s why his criminal activities were newsworthy. He never stopped working.

This movie was so good. They hired the same director to direct Iron Man 3 and I think that turned out to be one of the best MCU movies.

Downey's charm and impressive acting ability is what launched Marvel. I doubt any other actor would've led all the way to End Game

Shane Black is an absolute master of his craft. In a perfect world, he should have the renown of an A-list director and film much more. Look no further than seeing Lethal Weapon, Last Action Hero, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang and The Nice Guys .

Heart & Souls was the first movie I saw RDJ in, and that movie is still one of my favorites to this day! His performance was wonderful in it. I'm very glad he got his life together, he's truly a fantastic entertainer.

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang was criminally underrated! Along with A Scanner Darkly! I enjoyed both films and wished they made more of those off-beat movies that aren't seen as potential franchises.

Downey has always been a great actor. He just needed to get out of the addiction and it's really great that he did. As far as I know, he's genuinely a pretty great guy -- at least he is now.

Less Than Zero is actually a pretty amazing movie and perhaps one of his best performances, though some would argue that he wasn't even acting, just being himself.

It was funny, smart, great dialogue, perfect comedic timing. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang is an amazing film. The Judge is also highly underrated as well

KKBB was a really good movie. RDJ was PERFECT in Tropic Thunder! I’ll die on this hill.

An underrated gem. I remember watching it in theatre. It was funny, smart, and had its own zany style. I see his performance here as an early beta version of his future performance as Iron Man.

He also starred in Fincher's classic, "Zodiac" a year before Iron Man came out.

My first Downey Jr. Movie was Back to School. He was the 80s for me. I wouldn't notice him again till A Scanner Darkly. I was a huge Keanu fan (post Matrix) and I recognized Downey Jr. But was taken away by his and Woody Harlesons performances. That got me to Natural Born Killers... and wow there's Rodney Dangerfield playing the most vile character I could imagine. I was also into NIN so that movie became my thing at an age where it probably shouldn't. All before Ironman. Infact I skipped around most superhero films they just aren't my thing. But I get it. He's a fast talking intellectual type. Good on ya

He was also fantastic in A Scanner Darkly a couple years before Iron Man.

I love the movie Restoration. He plays a man who starts as a drunk fool and through different loses he redeems himself and becomes the best person he could be. He shows his amazing range of acting skills in the movie.

This movie was panned by many critics but it's hilarious and heartfelt. I've watched it about 20 times and given it as a gift several times

Since I was too young in the 90s to know who RDJ was, the first film I saw of his was Sherlock Holmes, this caused me to go in a spiral of RDJ films. I fell in love with Kiss Kiss Bang Bang after I saw it. My favourite line is still "Oh look! It's Elmo the elf. Good morning Elmo, WHATS IN YOUR BASKET!?"

best Downey moment has to be in Ally McBeal when he sits next to her to play piano. Such a lovely playful scene that showed almost all the best bits of his acting range

Love Kiss Kiss, he also did the insanely underrated Charlie Barlett movie as a principle around the same time

He was so good in Oppenheimer that it took me half the movie to realize he was in it 😂

"Kiss, Kiss, Bang, Bang" (what the Japanese call James Bond) is a great film. I wonder if someone at the studio hated RDJ, and torpedoed the movie.

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang is probably my favorite movie with Robert Downey Jr. I love the dynamic between Downey and Val Kilmer, and the comedy is my kind of humor

His role in A Scanner Darkly is a personal favorite of mine

This movie is so freaking hilarious! Shane Black’s writing and directing is pitch perfect for this pulpy detective action movie & he couldn’t have cast it better without the chemistry of RDJ and Val Kilmer. Their comedic timing just plays off the other so well and makes me cry-laugh so much

Also loved Wonder Boys. A movie he made just a few years before Kiss Kiss. Great cast -- including Tobey Maguire and Michael Douglas, future Marvel stars as well -- and a great plot. Small movie, but a favorite of mine.

I think RDJ is just a generally likable and good guy. He had a rough start thanks to his upbringing and environment, but he seems to have overcome it. I wish him all the best.

This was a great study into RDJ’s career. Awesome video!

I just want to mention his performance in Due Date. The movie is a little lacking but I love RDJs performance and I feel like it was a perfect counter to his constant "Iron Man" mode he had at the time.

While finishing I'm happy for RDJ to find success in the MCU, I would have loved to have seen Kiss Kiss Bang Bang turned into a series by HBO. The chemistry between Kilmer and RDJ is electric and the script is razor sharp. I'm always proud to say I'm one of the few who saw this on the big screen.

I watched RDJ's career rise and fall in real time as I was a kid when he was in supporting roles in Weird Science and Back to School. Every couple years throughout the 90s seemed like a come back only for him to stumble again. He still put in some great performances during those drug addled days, but it was wonderful during the MCU era when we stopped worrying about him and just enjoyed the work. Seeing him get that Oscar for Oppenheimer (after losing in '92, but tbh that was a stellar year for best actor noms) was very touching. So many careers (and lives) are ended to addiction, it's just great to see how good it can get when you turn things around. Great video.

Downey's own journey in life deserves its movie as a whole. The rise and fall and rise and fall and rise all over again.

It was a great movie and a great performance. I feel like it only got overlooked because this movie came out immediately before his "breakout" role in Iron Man. This movie will always be special to me though. This is Robert Downey Jr at his finest.

I worked at Blockbuster when this movie came out and watched the pre-street copy; fell absolutely in love with the movie. I recommended it to EVERYBODY. It’s one of my all-time favorites.

3:53 lmao, thanks Mel! Never thought I'd have to thank him for anything ever again, but yet here we are. 😅😂

YES! such an underrated movie, it's criminal how few people know thus movie

Loved Shane Black's the nice guys also along with kiss kiss bang bang. Terrific movies.

Dolittle wasn’t that bad, just a basic throwback to 2000s zany family movies.

I was never a Downey fan until I saw him in A Scanner Darkly. Then I noticed him as an actor. For me, I felt this movie was his come back.

the Marvel Studios owes so much to John, I've never seen that interview he appears in but it's nice to know they recognise his contributions

RDJ owes me, personally, a better Ally McBeal ending. I was one of the people that watched the show in its latter years because of him and the wonderful way he played Larry and when he was out I felt as heartbroken as Ally herself. I was hoping that he'd return and give me that ending but no... So he owes me a "happy" ending 😂😂😂

Now it makes sense how his CGI scene as Tony Stark showcasing his early life (as Tony Stark and his daddy issues) makes sense. Robert hadn't been only acting then. He was taking in emotion from his real life experiences with his dad and putting it forward as Tony's unresolved daddy issues.

I just hope that RDJ will be able to maintain his sobriety because he has made great gains in getting his life back on track.

I was lucky enough to catch Kiss Kiss Bang Bang shortly after it hit DVD and fell in love with it - I'm a big fan of noir, and Shane Black is a true legend in buddy cop films, so the combo sold me, and RDJ was absolutely fantastic in it (though I've rarely seen a film where he isn't, even if the film's not that good, including in Doolittle). Val Kilmer's best role since...actually, Spartan was only the year before, but he was great in KKBB. I will forever sing its praises, along with The Nice Guys and (not really related, but an underrated fantastic film) Lucky Number Slevin.

Downey's first Sherlock Holmes movie was brilliant. He's the only actor that has really portrayed Holmes' physicality correctly.

I don’t think this was the only movie that helped his comeback. He did a couple films that were great as well. “A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints”, Game 6, and a small role in Finchers “Zodiac”.

A Scanner Darkly is such an underrated movie, but it’s one of those 2006 flops that I’m sure a lot of people have never seen or even knew he was in. And leaving it off this is criminal lol. His performance was elite

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang probably opened the door, but the comeback and ubiquity of his name didn't come until Iron Man. It was the first step that let him run.

People really need to stop overlooking his performance in the zodiac which is one of my favorite films

I remember seeing the first trailer for the original Iron Man and thinking... "oh he's basically playing his character from Kiss Kiss Bang Bang... but as Iron Man." And that made me want to see it opening night. Two great movies and happy he got his life/career on track.

My favorite RDJ role will always be A Scanner Darkly. It’s such an under appreciated movie because it’s kind of slow and subtle but God, he gave such a scene-stealing performance for having such a small role.

Favorite RDJ movie has to be The Judge. A little disappointed you didnt mention that one.

I know A Scammer Darkly isn't as popular but that was around the same time I think and I always loved it

I love kiss kiss bang bang, but I didn’t know it played such a crucial role in his rehabilitation in Hollywood. I knew it was part of his comeback story and that’s all. It’s such a smart, funny movie. Kilmer and RDJ have great chemistry. I mean really great. I guess It’s my favorite. I also love his cameo in Chef, but Johnny Leg really was the scene stealer there. Leguizamo had a really juicy supporting role.

Downey's father gave him "drugs", plural, not just marijuana. Any interview I've read or seen, whether it's with RDJ or his dad, references drugs. What happens when a child's body is subjected to the poison of drugs? RDJ had that in his system from the age of 6. Told a judge that he was an addict by the age of 8. Addiction wasn't a choice for him. His near death experiences and incarcerations were a direct result of his father's irresponsibility. Also, he didn't fall asleep in the neighbor's bed, he passed out and had to be revived by paramedics. What is truly miraculous is that he is able, day by day, to overcome the grip of addiction .

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I saw Kiss Kiss Bang Bang in theaters and I knew RDJ would be back. It is such a great movie.

I loved this movie so much and was rooting for RDJ the entire way. As someone who watched all the moments going back to SNL I really wanted Downey to get back to what he was so obviously good at, other than taking drugs.

Recently a movie reactor watched Rodney Dangerfield's Back To School. Since her only experience with Downey was the MCU, his appearance & performance floored her. At first he refused to believe it was him, until she looked up the credit. I truly enjoyed two of his earlier works, Only You, and Heart & Souls.

Also around this time he did an AMAZING independent film, produced by Sting and his wife, call A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints. It starred RDJ, Channing Tatum and Shia L. Recommended!

I really like Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. So many clever twists that feel like they just occur naturally from the character interactions. For me, it's Shane Black's best writing and probably Downey's best performance.

Heart and Souls was the first movie I saw him in. I had it recorded on VHS and used to watch it a bunch. Then Kiss Kiss Bang Bang was such a fun movie, and I loved his interactions with Val Kilmer. I wasn’t originally interested in Ironman, but saw it outside the cinema on DVD and was curious where the rest was going to go. What a great look at his trajectory. Thanks!

I’m glad they chose him as iron man instead of Nicholas cage

When Iron Man forst came out, I think fans were predicting a dip into the Marvel stories where Tony had fallen into the bottle and worked his way back out. When we saw Robert, we knew he'd already done that in real life so only greatness would follow. And it did.

Forgotten to mention scanner darkly. That was also a great film

I'm always surprised that people don't reference "A guide to recognizing your saints" when discussing RDJs career timeline. His roll may have been minor, but the film was great and he gave a stellar performance. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang is also fantastic, I just think it's interesting few people mention it.

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang is the definitive film that made me say, “Holy shit! RDJ is back!” It is just such an amazing story, performance, ensemble that is irrefutably undeniable. To this day, it still remains my favourite RDJ performance… although Tropic Thunder came in a pretty close 2nd. Iron Man is the most consistent and well suited character for RDJ, but it just looks too easy for him. He IS Tony Stark. The other 2 performances I mentioned are so good because of the work he had to do as an actor to make them so enjoyable. No matter what people say, the mans story will become that of Hollywood legend. So very few actors have such a massive falling out and recover to elite status.

We need more movies like Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. Goddamn what a gem

I'm surprised there was no mention of the movie "Less than Zero" (1987), which according to RDJ himself, he was high half the time while it was filming. A great movie BTW starring Andrew McCarfthy and Jami Gertz

He was amazing in Oppenheimer

I cannot, for the life of me, imagine an Iron Man starring Tom Cruise

Kiss Kiss and Nice Guys are awesome! No one does mismatched ‘buddy’ films like Shane Black - Lethal Weapon, Long Kids Goodnight, Last Boy Scout!

RDJs story reminds me an awful lot of another celebrity whose career was ruined for doing some questionable things…⚡️

I was half-expecting "Wonder Boys" to be the movie that resuscitated him. Solid film, solid performance.

KKBB is a classic, and on regular rotation in our house...

Yeah, Downey's interpretation of Tony Stark set the tone for the entire franchise as a series that did not take itself too seriously and just had fun with the roles. Cruise doing it would have just been another Mission Impossible style franchise. And while that may have worked out for Cruise, it would not have worked for the franchise.

Thank you for looking at this movie. It is SOOO GOOD and SOO underrated!

Less Than Zero was very formative for me in my college years.

KKBB is so good and underrated....absolutly hilarious and so well done

His Oppenheimer performance was amazing, I kept forgetting it was him. Big contrast to someone like Bryan Cranston who while a great actor ends up feeling pretty much the same in every serious role he plays.

I'd argue that it was the combination of Kiss Kiss Bang Bang & Iron Man that saved his career. KKBB revived peoples confidence in his acting ability but it took Iron Man to convince the studios he was a bankable star again as well as no longer an insurance risk.

Acting wise, you haven't seen anything until you've seen RDJ's performance in _A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints._ His performance as _Iron Man,_ especially in the first, is something to behold. His performance elevates a popcorn, superhero, action flick to art. If you want to study performance, study his in _Chaplin._

Love his back story and glad he made it though it. Love his acting and glad he is Iron man for all of us.

RD Jr. is charismatic, and when he is well cast, he is exceptional. There are only a few actors that can save bad movies. But I'm not sure that is the tallent of the actor as much as the loyalty of his/her fans.

He was incredible in tropic thunder

most slept-on comedies ever: Dirty Work, Tom Hanks' remake of The Ladykillers, and Kiss Kiss Bang Bang.

US Marshals was one of my favourite sleeper films of the nineties. I didn't realize at the time RDJ was in such turmoil.

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang was and is a great movie funny as hell. his performance and the cast in Tropic Thunder were also spot on, people need to see these master pieces to appreciate them.