Robert Downey Jr.’s third chapter: “Oppenheimer” is just the beginning

That was the appeal of making Oppenheimer With Nolan and his producing partner Emma Thomas, they are, like the Downey family, another filmmaking duo, husband and wife, subject to great ups and downs. “For him, Chris and Emma have discovered this like no one else has,” says Susan.

Even their casting process is meaninglessly simplified. “When you’re doing something for Chris Nolan, you get a phone call: ‘Chris wants you for this.’ Will you come read the script at his house?” says Susan, who jokes that her husband’s curiosity conflicts with his more sedate tendencies, for example. “Wait, I have to drive,” Robert says. That’s the Far East?… OK.’ Once he was willing to do it, I already knew his mindset was very open.

the Oppenheimer The team was surprised to meet a movie star who was willing to shed his armor. “Honestly, he kind of defied all my expectations of him,” Thomas says. “We talked a lot about how great it was to work with him, but we work in a very specific, somewhat simplistic way. I wasn’t sure how he would adapt to that way of working, because when you’re a big movie star like Robert, that’s not necessarily the way you’re used to working.

but this Avengers The experience also prepared him to be a part of it OppenheimerGiant’s Ensemble, one of 79 speaking roles in a cast that includes three Best Actor winners. Strauss-Downey repeatedly clashes with Oppenheimer-Murphy but also with his own assistant (played by Alden Ehrenreich) and even with Albert Einstein (Tom Conti). Powered by a potent mix of heartfelt condemnation and petty grievances, he dominates scene after scene of crowded public hearings, strategy sessions, and backroom machinations, but without the disorienting excitement of his Marvel alter ego. Strauss may be a politically astute survivor, but he is also a black hole of personality who doesn’t fill a room so much as draw everyone into his own room.

As he did in his Marvel films, Downey relished the opportunity to deviate from the best-laid plans, carefully plotting a scene with the filmmakers and crew only for it to spiral out of control. “From a creative standpoint, he was very well prepared,” Nolan says. “It’s a very complex part, and he totally nailed it. He also had a number of things, I can’t call them improvisation because a lot of it was very carefully planned, but he had a number of flourishes, things that he wanted to bring into the character, things that he wanted to “Experience it.”

Nolan and cinematographer Hoyt Van Hoytema would follow Downey around the room as he delivered monologues extending for several pages.

“I think he liked the freedom to move around the room and introduce himself with whatever energy he felt: ‘Let’s try again!’ “Let’s try it a different way!” says Nolan. “No matter how heavy the 70mm camera is, Hoyt will never get tired. In a way, maybe Robert was too expected To get tired, but he didn’t. So he was able to really make that happen, reach for something and extend himself.

Joe and Anthony Russo, who have directed Downey in three Marvel films, describe Downey’s style in similar terms: “When Robert returns to the set, Robert is known for throwing the plan out the window and climbing on top of the couch and whatever else,” Joe says. “Kind of going off-book.” “He does it because he likes to surprise himself. He likes to keep things fresh. He shines for that.”