Robert Downey Jr might be a huge Hollywood star now - most recently starring in one of Hollywood’s biggest movies of 2023, Oppenheimer, but the actor didn’t always have it so good!
The Avengers actor revealed that he auditioned for Jack Black’s part in The Holiday, the iconic movie that also starred Jude Law, Kate Winslet and Cameron Diaz - only for Kate to roast him at auditions.
Chatting with Jimmy Fallon on The Howard Stern Show, the pair discussed how they had auditioned together, with Robert explaining: “We both got called in just as seat fillers… [Nancy Meyers] needed someone to read with the gals and we're sitting there going, 'It's about to happen for us,'"
“And I was like, 'I've got to have a better English accent than Jude Law at this point.' And Winslet said, 'That is the worst British accent I've ever heard.'"
© Getty ImagesHe joked: "I'll check out now, but I'm taking the gummy bears from the minibar."
MORE: Oppenheimer: all about the startling true story and Christopher Nolan's unbelievable A-List cast
MORE: I went to the Oppenheimer premiere – and this is what happened
Jimmy also spoke about his experiences after reading the part of Miles in the rom-com, adding: “I thought, honestly, I said, 'If Jack Black says no to this movie, I'm so in,'" Fallon recalled. "'I'll do it for half his price.'”
Jimmy also revealed that he never auditioned again after the reading, joking: "I'm sitting across from Robert Downey Jr., and I go, 'This is the best actor I've ever sat across and did a scene with in my entire life.' It was mind-blowing for me and it kind of, I quit the business. I never went back. That was the last time I auditioned for a role."
Robert, who is perhaps best known for playing Tony Stark in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, surprised fans by calling Oppenheimer “the best film” he has ever been involved in. Chatting at the UK Premiere of the upcoming biographical thriller, he explained: “This is the best film I’ve ever been in, and I cannot wait for you all to experience it.
“No matter what your expectations are and what you might think, it transcends them. This is what a summer blockbuster when I was growing up, used to be. It just kind of changed your life. But again it's why Christopher Nolan is who he is.”
At the premiere, Kenneth Branagh also spoke to HELLO! about the incredible talent in the movie, which also stars Cillian Murphy, Emily Blunt, Florence Pugh and Matt Damon.
He said: “To have the privilege of working with an incredible ensemble of actors with a master filmmaker on a subject that is both important historically but also provides an amazing piece of cinema. It’s great storytelling in a great medium from a master and to be involved with that, that’s so special."
