In 1994, audiences witnessed what was arguably Robert Downey Jr.'s most compelling film and role of the entire decade, as far as Chaplinin the form of Oliver Stone's wild, chaotic romance about mass murder. Natural Born KillersDowney's likeable, over-the-top performance as tabloid TV journalist Wayne Gale lives up to the film itself, and he himself has spoken about how impressed he was during production.
Technically, the Natural Born Killers Oral history of gift It goes into detail about several cast members who were under one influence or another during production. But it's the MCU's future Doctor Doom who was apparently put in the toughest positions when it came to getting the job done.
The Oscar-winning actor spoke candidly about the worst-case scenario, anti-FOMO, that formed when his decision to get in shape coincided with a change in the filming schedule for the big prison interview that led to the deadly riot. As Downey put it:
The day we did the prison interview, I had been partying, non-stop. And then everything on the schedule got pushed forward and suddenly I had to be there in two hours. To this day, it was one of the most humiliating notifications I've ever received, because it was a seven-page scene. They gave me a set and I was absolutely useless. Then they gave me a therapeutic injection of “vitamins B12” (I'm going to put that in quotes, italics, underline and question marks on either side). I have never experienced a more pleasurable nine hours in my life.
Without going into too much speculation about what might have been in that “vitamin” booster they gave him, I can attest as a viewer that it worked. Especially as a young viewer watching for the first time. Natural Born Killers Back in the 90s, I would never have imagined that the prison interview would be such a miserable experience for RDJ. Whatever ups and downs his sobriety had during that shoot, it all fits surprisingly well with Stone's crazy reality. (Who knows how it would have gone with Quentin Tarantino's original, controversial script still intact?)
The fact that production didn't have to mess up that entire day of shooting, as might have happened with other actors in that position, speaks to Robert Downey Jr.'s professionalism. He continued his reflection by pointing out how prepared he was for that scene, even if it all happened hours earlier than expected.
But, I looked at the pages from left to right, scattered on the floor, only twice, and I wasn't following the book. And it was the only time this happened during that shoot: You know how sometimes the crew applauds after takes when people are making movies and they really do great? When I finally got through that day, and Woody did great, did great, then they had to turn around and attack me. The whole crew applauded because I think they intuitively know that I shouldn't have been anywhere other than an emergency room that morning.
I can only imagine how stressful it must have been for the cast and crew that day, not quite knowing how things would go with Downey and then getting to that end point (presumably) without any absolute disaster occurring. Maybe it's still worth applauding in the minds of some of them.
Even though it turned out to be a success, I'll happily spend the rest of my life without having a similar experience anyway, if possible. So I guess it's a “good” thing that I don't have any big Hollywood movies coming out with Woody Harrelson and Juliette Lewis. Wait, maybe there is. is A little FOMO to get you to bite…
To rewatch Downey's performance, or see it for the first time, Natural Born Killers It's available to stream now with a Netflix subscription, and for those who enjoy Oliver Stone's darker instincts, read on for why you should watch it.The handhis 1981 horror film co-starring Michael Caine and Andrea Marcovicci.