“What we do is meaningful and the stuff we decide to make is important.”
The 2024 Oscars was a triumph for Christopher Nolan, Oppenheimer and two of the actors that lit up the screens in the biopic, Cillian Murphy and Robert Downey Jr.
Oppenheimer swept to seven Oscar wins, including Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor, Best Director and Best Picture. Downey Jr won the golden statuette for his role as conniving US politician Lewis Strauss, following on from a slew of awards for the role, including a Golden Globe and Bafta.
This was the third time Downey Jr was nominated but his first Oscar win. The room rose to acknowledge and acclaim the 58-year-old. He thanked his wife, Susan Downey from getting him back on the right track and transforming his life. “She found me, a snarling rescue pet, and loved me back to life,” he said. “That’s why I am here. Thank you.” Downey Jr added:
“I’d like to thank my terrible childhood and the Academy, in that order… Here’s my little secret, I needed this job more than it needed me. It was fantastic and I stand here a better man because of it… What we do is meaningful and the stuff we decide to make is important.”
Robert Downey Jr won his award mid-way through a show that lasted just under three and a half hours. During one of the commercial breaks, in the broadcast, TV cameras missed a lovely moment between Downey Jr and Cillian Murphy. The men embraced and chatted amiably before other well-wishers arrived on the scene. Murphy hung back then hugged Downey Jr again before returning to his seat, a couple of rows back.
Cillian Murphy on Robert Downey Jr
Lewis Strauss and J. Robert Oppenheimer were long-time adversaries, so some of the most compelling scenes in the Oppenheimer movie featured both men going head-to-head.
During an 2023 interview with GQ, Cillian Murphy was gushing in his praise of Robert Downey Jr. He commented:
“A lot of the scenes I have with Downey, it was quite loose and quite improvisational. I mean, acting with him was just extraordinary. He’s just electrifying, the most available, engaged, present, unpredictably brilliant actor I’ve ever worked with.”
In a fitting touch to the impressive acting ensemble in the movie, Christopher Nolan invited a host of the main characters, including Josh Hartnett and Emily Blunt, onto the stage when he and fellow producer (and his wife) Emma Thomas collected the Best Picture award.
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