Robert Downey Jr. met with Iron Man 2 villain Mickey Rourke thanks to his controversial comedy movie.
Robert Downey Jr. had his fair share of controversies before he became one of the most popular actors of his generation after leading the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Iron Man in multiple blockbusters.
Robert Downey Jr. in Tropic Thunder.
Even when he was just cementing his place in MCU with Iron Man (2008), RDJ was attracting scrutiny for his role in the war comedy Tropic Thunder, which was released just two months after the first installment of the newly launched Marvel franchise.
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Why Robert Downey Jr.’s Tropic Thunder Is Considered a Controversial Movie
Robert Downey Jr. starred in Tropic Thunder as Kirk Lazarus in a story about a film crew shooting a war film in Southeast Asia. However, the twist in the seemingly simple plot is that Ben Stiller’s work is satire. The hour and 47-minute-long commentary shows how Hollywood doesn’t shy away from exploiting serious subjects to make money, even if it means using problematic and racist tropes.
Robert Downey Jr.
Downey Jr. portrayed Kirk, a fictional five-time Oscar-winning method actor who portrays African-American Staff Sergeant Lincoln Osiris (token appearance of a black character). For his role, Kirk blackens his face through a pigmentation alteration procedure. As expected, many viewers took offense with Downey Jr. for playing Kirk, who delivers an offensive portrayal of a Black American.
Further, Tugg Speedman’s (Stiller) reenactment of a Forrest Gump-like character named Simple Jack was also seen as offensive due to the way it showed a mentally disabled character. Then there’s RDJ’s infamous dialogue, “You never go full r****d.”
Regardless, many critics and fans understood the context in which everything was done and Downey Jr. even seemingly got a green flag from the Academy, earning a nomination for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role.
This development also led to him crossing paths with the future supervillain of Iron Man 2, Mickey Rourke, who received a nomination for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role for his work in The Wrestler in the same year.
Read more: Mickey Rourke Owes His Hollywood Revival to One Comic Book Movie and it Wasn’t Robert Downey Jr.’s Iron Man 2
Robert Downey Jr. Went to Extreme Lengths to Convince Iron Man Villain to Join the MCU
Iron Man 2 sees Tony Stark face vengeful madman Ivan Vanko, who had ties to his father’s legacy. Rourke played the ruthless Russian physicist – also known as Whiplash – to great effect, impressing viewers with how he matched Stark’s larger-than-life personality following the latter’s rise to stardom after the world became aware of his powers.
Mickey Rourke in Iron Man 2.
Downey Jr. perhaps saw that quality very early on and made a move when he met Rourke at one of the Oscar banquets. According to MCU: The Reign of Marvel Studios, during this event the Tropic Thunder star convinced Rourke to become the villain in Iron Man 2.
According to a report via IndieWire, the 58-year-old was so keen to join hands with Rourke that when Marvel lowballed the 9½ Weeks star on salary, Downey Jr. supposedly offered a part of his $10 million earnings to keep everyone on the negotiating table happy.
