Robert Downey Jr. Thanks His 'Troubled Past' and 'Jail Stint' During Emotional Oscar Speech

Sunday marked Robert Downey Jr.'s first Oscar win after working in the entertainment business for almost thirty years. For his part in Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer, Downey Jr. won Best Supporting Actor, defeating stars like Ryan Gosling from Barbie, Robert De Niro from Killers of the Flower Moon, Sterling K. Brown from American Fiction, and Mark Ruffalo from Poor Things.

The Iron Man actor thanked his 'troubled childhood' and his 'jail stint' during his emotionally charged acceptance speech. Downey Jr. expressed gratitude to his attorney for securing his release from Corcoran, California jail 15 years ago, "The half of which he spent trying to get me insured and bailing me out of the hoosgow, thanks bro," he said. 

As per The UK Mirror, the Zodiac actor began by thanking his wife, "I'd like to thank my terrible childhood and the Academy, in that order. I'd like to thank my veterinarian, I meant my wife, Susan Downey over there. She found me a snarling rescue pet and you loved me back to life."

He added. "That's why I'm here. Here's my little secret, I needed this job more than it needed me. Chris knew it. I stand there before you a better man because of it. What we do is meaningful and the stuff we decide to make it important." The actor previously acknowledged that his drug use started when he was just eight years old, and as a result, he was sentenced to three years in prison back in 1999. His close friend Rob Lowe exclusively told Page Six before the Oscars: "I always thought I was going to be the first person in my Santa Monica history class to win an Oscar, turns out it's going to be Downey. And I couldn’t be happier." 

Downey Jr. remarked last year that being in prison was like "being sent to a distant planet where there is no way home until the planets align." Robert has been sober for years and has been transparent about his prior struggles.

The Chef actor's path to recovery was described as "a rocky one" by a close source, who also added that only a limited number of individuals supported him in his sobriety. "They love to put you up at the top to knock the s**t out of you and watch you crawl back up and give you a nice little entryway to get back in and a path to redemption." In 1996, Downey Jr. was initially taken into custody on charges of possessing heroin, cocaine, and an unloaded.357 caliber Magnum.

He received a three-year probationary period and was mandated to submit to a mandatory drug test. However, he spent over four months in the Los Angeles County jail the following year after failing a drug test; as a result, Deborah Falconer, his first wife, divorced him.

Downey Jr. served for a mere fifteen months in prison. He was freed in August 2000, but over Thanksgiving weekend, the Due Date actor was detained once more on suspicion of possessing cocaine and Valium and of being under the influence of drugs. He was spared additional time behind bars.