Robert Downey Jr. made it a point to stay out of any Oscar race for his portrayal as Tony Stark. The actor made the revelation Monday while taping The Howard Stern Show live from Los Angeles.
The two got on the subject when Downey made a quip about Martin Scorsese’s recent comments to Empire magazine that Marvel movies are “not cinema.”
Downey proceeded to mostly brush off the remark, saying he doesn’t think Scorsese really cares that much, but Stern said he believed the Taxi Driver director didn’t like the movies and others in the industry had the same feeling, which is why Downey was never nominated for an Oscar for his work as Stark.
“I’m so glad you brought this up because there was some talk about it, and I said ‘let’s not’ and because I’m much more like you than you might really want to believe,” Downey Jr. told Stern. “I listen to the show and I agree with most all of your opinions, varied though they may be. Occasionally, you’ll go on some tributary trail of thought [and] I’ll go like, ‘Oh that’s not how I see it, but I love that you see it that way.'”
Downey also said, “I’ll tell you the truth. I didn’t expect [the Marvel Cinematic Universe] to become what it became, and it is this very large, multiheaded Hydra at this point.”
When pressed on what Scorsese said, Downey replied, “It’s his opinion. I mean it plays in theaters. I appreciate his opinion because I think it’s like anything. We need all of the different perspectives so we can come to the center and move on.”
Downey, of course, has been nominated for an Oscar for other works, including for best actor for 1992’s Chaplin and best supporting actor for 2008’s Tropic Thunder.
