Robert Downey Jr. Talks Wearing Blackface In The Film ‘Tropic Thunder:’ “My Mother Was Horrified”

Robert Downey Jr. received an Oscar nomination for best supporting actor for his role in the 2008 satirical action-comedy, ”Tropic Thunder.” However, the actor was criticized for appearing in blackface for the role.

The film was centered around a director who attempts to liven up a movie by placing the film’s stars in a real jungle, claiming to capture their performance with hidden cameras. Unfortunately, a wild sequence of events actually led the cast and crew into an actual war zone.

On the Joe Rogan Experience Podcast, the 54-year-old, who is widely known for his portrayal as Marvel’s Iron Man, revealed that his mother was ‘horrified’ when she discovered that he had taken the role.

“My mother was horrified… ‘Bobby, I’m telling ya, I have a bad feeling about this.’ I was like, ‘yeah me too, mom,’” Downey revealed to host, Joe Rogan.

The actor even admitted that he was also skeptical about taking the role.

“I thought yeah, I’ll do that after Iron Man, and then I thought, ‘this is a terrible idea,” he said.

However, he quickly obliged, given the movie’s potential.

“It was impossible to not have it be an offensive nightmare of a movie, and 90 percent of my black friends were like, ‘dude, that was great.'”