Robert Downey Jr. and director Christopher Nolan from the 2023 film ‘Oppenheimer’ answer their most searched questions from the web. How did Christopher Nolan film a nuclear bomb detonation? How did Robert Downey Jr. become Marvel’s Iron Man? What would an Avengers film directed by Christopher Nolan be like? Watch as they answer these questions and many more.
SAG-AFTRA members are currently on strike; as part of the strike, union actors are not promoting their film and TV projects. This interview was conducted prior to the strike.
SAG-AFTRA members are currently on strike; as part of the strike, union actors are not promoting their film and TV projects. This interview was conducted prior to the strike.
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TechTranscript
00:00 - Hi, I'm Robert Downey Jr.
00:01 - And I'm Christopher Nolan,
00:02 and this is the Wired Autocomplete Interview.
00:05 - I probably should have taken my blood pressure medication.
00:11 - Does Robert Downey Jr. have tattoos?
00:18 - I have six.
00:20 That's the sixth one,
00:21 and that was the Avengers cast tattoo.
00:24 That happened the evening of the premiere for "Infinity War."
00:28 Scarlett got it first, then Chris Evans got it,
00:31 then I got it, then Jeremy Renner got it,
00:35 then Chris Hemsworth got it,
00:37 even though he was a little tentative about it
00:39 and seemed to overreact to the pain.
00:42 And then Mark Ruffalo said, "I'm not getting that tattoo.
00:44 I don't want to be part of your Hollywood inside game,"
00:48 to which I applauded him.
00:49 - Does Robert Downey Jr. do his own stunts?
00:55 - In a year where the level and magnitude of stunts
01:00 may be at an all-time high,
01:01 I am committing to do less stunts every year
01:05 for the rest of my career, but yes.
01:08 - Does Robert Downey Jr. like AC/DC?
01:11 - Come on, of course.
01:13 Back in Black from the first Iron Man.
01:15 - Oh.
01:16 (imitates Iron Man theme)
01:20 - There's your sound bite, buddy.
01:22 - Does Robert Downey Jr. like Gwyneth Paltrow?
01:25 - I do not like Gwyneth Paltrow.
01:27 (laughing)
01:28 I absolutely adore her like a sister.
01:31 Like a sister that you may have made out with a few times.
01:34 (laughing)
01:36 While still liking her.
01:38 - That's for you.
01:41 - Okay, I'd like to actually try this inverted
01:43 just to make this even more impossible.
01:45 There we go, this is gonna work a fucking treat.
01:48 Why Christopher Nolan?
01:50 Now that in and of itself is just a question
01:52 if you think about it.
01:53 Why Christopher Nolan doesn't use CGI?
01:57 - I find CGI, however versatile it is,
01:59 but it always tends to feel a little safe to me.
02:01 I think if you want something to have a bit of bite,
02:03 you've got the imagery to have a bit of threat,
02:05 even if it's a miniature, even if it's something very fake,
02:07 but something real on camera,
02:09 I think it gives you a better result.
02:10 - Why does Christopher Nolan--
02:13 - We're in the why's.
02:14 - Shoot on film?
02:15 - I shoot on film because it's the highest quality
02:18 imaging format ever devised, particularly IMAX film,
02:21 large format film.
02:22 - But film shows you the world
02:24 kind of the way your eye sees it.
02:26 Is it ridiculous for me to give a serious answer
02:28 while you're saying that?
02:29 But that's why I shoot film.
02:31 - Give the people what they want.
02:32 - Where does Christopher Nolan,
02:35 oh, this one's important, I better sit up.
02:37 [laughing]
02:40 - Where does Christopher Nolan get his ideas?
02:42 - All over the place, different on every film.
02:44 Oppenheimer, somebody I've been interested in a long time,
02:47 didn't know that much about the specifics of his story,
02:50 then came to the book "American Prometheus"
02:53 and that absolutely got me hooked.
02:55 So in the case of Oppenheimer, the idea, I mean, gosh,
02:58 I trace it right back to like, you know,
02:59 when I was a kid in the '80s and we all thought
03:01 we were gonna die in nuclear Armageddon.
03:03 - Absolutely, me too.
03:04 - You remember Sting had that song "Russians"?
03:06 - "Russians."
03:07 - Oppenheimer's deadly toys.
03:08 - Yes, how can I save my little boy
03:10 from Oppenheimer's deadly toy?
03:12 There is no monopoly of common sense
03:14 on either side of the political fence.
03:16 We share the same biology,
03:19 regardless of ideology. - Regardless of ideology.
03:21 - What might just save us, me and you,
03:24 is if, where is Christopher Nolan from?
03:28 - Where am I from?
03:30 Born in London, but I'm half American, half English.
03:33 My mother's American.
03:34 I've grown up kind of both sides of the Atlantic,
03:37 but originally from England.
03:39 - How come your brother doesn't have your accent?
03:41 - He has his own accent.
03:43 - I know that, I know that he speaks the way he speaks,
03:46 but he sounds like he's from America and you don't.
03:48 - Yes, but that's the American thing where you say,
03:50 how come you have an accent and he doesn't?
03:52 To which you say, well, he does have an accent,
03:54 it's an American accent.
03:55 - You're right.
03:56 - Just 'cause of when my parents
03:58 were living in different countries,
03:59 so he went to school in America,
04:00 I went to school in England,
04:01 so you kind of get fixed with that accent.
04:04 - Sorry, no crew members were harmed
04:07 in the execution of this dalliance.
04:10 - How did Robert Downey Jr. become Iron Man?
04:14 - It was God's will.
04:16 - That's it, really?
04:17 - Well, and a pretty good screen test,
04:18 but I'll really tell you what happened
04:19 is the same weekend I did a movie called
04:22 Kiss Kiss Bang Bang,
04:24 Jon Favreau did a movie called Zathura,
04:26 they both tanked and we were both really hungry
04:30 to try to do something that would make an impact.
04:32 And when Iron Man came out,
04:34 everyone that knew me and loved me said,
04:36 this will do until the Dark Knight comes out.
04:39 And here we are now.
04:42 - What are Robert Downey Jr. hobbies?
04:45 - I have one hobby and that I take classic cars
04:48 and I do eco-resto mods on them.
04:52 Thus take old cars and then make them more energy efficient
04:57 and climate friendly.
04:58 Any follow up questions to that?
04:59 - No, 'cause it's getting dangerously close to a plug
05:02 for your TV show.
05:03 - All right, you're right.
05:04 - And we're here doing Oppenheimer.
05:04 - Am I limited to three or four?
05:06 - Shameless plug. - Yeah.
05:08 - Who does Robert Downey Jr. play in Oppenheimer?
05:12 - Louis Lichtenstein-Strauss.
05:15 He was the head of the Atomic Energy Commission.
05:18 He was a very conservative, patriotic American.
05:23 He and Oppenheimer were merging on Nemesis.
05:28 - No spoilers, no spoilers.
05:29 - None at all.
05:30 - Yeah, complicated man.
05:31 - He was a complicated guy, unlike me, as you can see.
05:34 - It takes one to play one.
05:36 What year was Robert Downey Jr. on SNL?
05:42 1985, oft considered the worst season
05:46 in the history of SNL.
05:47 I got that going for him.
05:48 - Is there one skit that sticks out?
05:50 - Suitcase Boy?
05:51 No?
05:53 - Could you tell me what that is?
05:54 I don't remember that.
05:55 - Well, no, that never made it to air.
05:56 And that's the one that sticks out.
05:59 Can Robert Downey Jr. play piano?
06:02 Only well enough to compose at a medium to high level.
06:07 What if Christopher Nolan directed The Avengers?
06:12 Whoa, that is the multiverse conundrum.
06:16 Having worked with you and Oppenheimer,
06:17 there'd probably be a lot too much Tony Stark.
06:20 You'd be running away with the movie a little bit.
06:22 - Like I didn't.
06:23 - And even more.
06:24 And not like in a new CG,
06:27 would you be prepared to get on one of those jet packs?
06:30 The ones they make for real that do the--
06:31 - Yeah, if Christopher Nolan had directed The Avengers,
06:34 we would still be shooting it.
06:35 (laughing)
06:37 - What is Christopher Nolan's best movie?
06:42 - The one I'm promoting.
06:43 I mean, that's how that works, right?
06:44 - I'm telling you, and I've seen every single film
06:47 you've ever done.
06:48 Oppenheimer is the culmination of your life's work,
06:51 and it is a fricking masterpiece, brother.
06:54 - Thank you.
06:54 - And that is the God's honest truth.
06:56 And now back to my faux sincerity, which works better.
07:00 What makes Christopher Nolan tick unique?
07:05 He's supposed to answer this?
07:07 - I was gonna say, I'm leaving that to you.
07:09 - He already told you he's British,
07:10 so you're never gonna get that answer out of him.
07:13 There's such a mystique around you
07:15 that I think sometimes people feel intimidated,
07:18 and then when you actually get in proximity to you,
07:21 and particularly shooting a film,
07:23 it's arguably the least judgmental,
07:25 most nurturing environment I could have ever
07:28 imagined being in.
07:29 He's kind of like the Wizard of Oz,
07:31 except I think he dresses cooler.
07:34 That's gonna travel.
07:35 (laughing)
07:37 - Moving on.
07:38 - Just remember, this was someone's idea
07:39 to pair us up here.
07:41 What is Christopher Nolan's
07:42 California driver's license number?
07:45 I'm sorry, first movie.
07:47 - My first movie is a film that Emma and I
07:50 produced together called "Following."
07:52 We shot it on black and white, 16 millimeter film.
07:55 We were working full time, we were a group of friends,
07:57 and we would shoot one day a week for about a year.
07:59 We put it together that way.
08:00 - You would never know, it seems.
08:02 Even your first film felt so complete.
08:04 What degree does Christopher Nolan have?
08:09 - I have an English degree from UCL in London.
08:12 - My gosh.
08:14 Are these edible?
08:14 No, okay, sorry.
08:16 - Is Robert Downey Jr. Tom Holland's godfather?
08:22 - If by godfather you mean I do light yard work
08:25 for him on Thursdays and detail his car
08:28 every other Saturday, then yes.
08:31 - Is Robert Downey Jr. related to Charlie Chaplin?
08:35 - Not that I'm aware of.
08:36 - Only in spirit?
08:37 - Yeah.
08:37 Speaking of great directors, Attenborough.
08:40 I got a complete education on cinema
08:45 and enthusiasm and trust and love.
08:48 - How old were you when you did that?
08:50 - I was 26.
08:51 And you know what?
08:52 He's like you, he just cries a lot more.
08:55 (laughing)
08:57 - Very sensitive man.
08:58 - Is Robert Downey Jr. going to ask Chris Nolan
09:00 to cry on cue for him?
09:02 You're god darn right I am.
09:04 Going tight, this is his screen test.
09:06 - Is Robert Downey Jr. a vegan?
09:08 - No, I'm a vegetarian, occasional pescatarian.
09:11 If I start feeling lightheaded, I might have some shrimp
09:14 or maybe a steelhead trout.
09:17 No scallops.
09:19 Just for the halibut, I might occasionally,
09:23 I like a bit of sole.
09:25 I don't know why that means sole.
09:27 I guess it's what goes beneath the surface.
09:29 I don't want this to end.
09:31 I mean, we're used to a bit of joviality, but this is.
09:33 - This is another level.
09:35 - How Christopher Nolan became a director.
09:39 - I started making films when I was a little kid.
09:42 Borrowed my dad's Super 8 camera.
09:44 I was about seven years old.
09:45 Started making films and I've kind of never stopped.
09:48 - Seven.
09:48 - Seven.
09:49 - Who is Christopher Nolan's cinematographer?
09:53 - Well, you can answer this one.
09:54 - Hoyteman.
09:56 - Great Dutch director of photography
09:58 and not afraid to pick up an IMAX camera
10:00 and hold it on his shoulder.
10:01 - How did Christopher Nolan recreate a nuclear explosion?
10:06 - Well, we don't want to give away the tricks too much.
10:09 Didn't use CG.
10:10 Try to come up with methods from the visual effects
10:13 and special effects department that were very small,
10:16 microscopic things that look huge,
10:18 but then also some giant big bangs out in the desert
10:21 that were pretty spectacular to live through.
10:24 - And that is how you give an answer
10:26 without giving an answer.
10:27 Is Christopher Nolan a physicist?
10:30 - No, I am not a physicist.
10:32 I've always been interested in physics
10:34 and I've done a lot of films that involve
10:35 looking into ideas of physics.
10:37 Purely an amateur.
10:39 - Don't know if I buy that.
10:40 Do you want another take?
10:41 - No, I'm good.
10:42 - Okay.
10:42 - What was Robert Downey Jr.'s first job?
10:49 - My first job was working at the Indian Walk shoe store
10:53 on Broadway and 83rd Street.
10:55 I made it about 10 shifts before I was fired
10:58 for my sticky fingers.
11:00 - Okay.
11:01 - What music does Robert Downey Jr. listen to?
11:05 - Everything from Prokofiev to,
11:07 I'm into Sleaford Mods lately.
11:10 And also Indio Downey, my firstborn.
11:12 Got an album coming out.
11:14 Fantastic.
11:15 - What is Robert Downey Jr. personality type?
11:18 - You want to take this one?
11:19 - No, I'm really interested to know what you're going to say.
11:23 - I usually play type A personalities.
11:27 - No, no, no.
11:28 Come on, come on, come on.
11:29 You're not getting away with type A.
11:30 That's too technical.
11:31 - I'm curious.
11:33 - Curious?
11:33 - I'm loyal.
11:35 I'm easily bored.
11:37 - I thought you were going to go with easy
11:39 for a minute there and I was going to shake my head.
11:41 - 'Cause I'm easy.
11:43 - What glasses does Robert Downey Jr. wear?
11:47 - That was a high degree of difficulty tape pull, by the way.
11:50 Do you see how he's mastered it already?
11:52 All kinds of glasses.
11:53 I love all glasses and a shameless plug.
11:56 I'm probably going to start my own glasses company.
11:58 Do you want to just go in tight on this?
12:00 Downey Design Exchange.
12:02 They'll be out in probably six, nine, 12, 16, 18 months,
12:06 depending on my personality type.
12:08 Does Christopher Nolan storyboard?
12:11 - Only select sequences.
12:13 I don't storyboard much,
12:14 but if there's something that people really need
12:16 to take a look at, you know,
12:17 I use them as a jumping off point for departments.
12:20 - I did not know that.
12:21 Does Christopher Nolan have social media?
12:24 - I do not.
12:24 - That is a pointless question
12:27 if you know anything about him,
12:28 because you would think it was 1847,
12:31 the way he communicates.
12:33 And this one just says Christopher Nolan.
12:37 Christopher Nolan influences.
12:39 - Influences.
12:40 Always like to talk about Ridley Scott.
12:42 Huge fan of his.
12:43 Stanley Kubrick, Terrence Malick, Nicholas Roeg.
12:45 I mean, there's just so many greats.
12:47 Too many influences to name them all.
12:49 - Nicholas Roeg is a really good poll.
12:50 Christopher Nolan and Cillian Murphy.
12:53 - And Cillian Murphy.
12:55 My old friend Cillian.
12:57 We worked together for 20 years.
12:59 One of the great actors of his generation or any other.
13:02 And we've done six films together.
13:03 - This is six, I've been here.
13:04 - This is six, but this is the first time
13:06 got to use him as a leading man.
13:08 - It's amazing.
13:09 - Yeah, first met him, he screen tested for Batman.
13:11 And I think we both kind of knew
13:13 he probably wasn't right for Batman,
13:15 but his test was so exciting
13:17 that the studio was okay for me to cast him as the villain.
13:20 - Scarecrow.
13:21 - Big star.
13:22 - Scarecrow?
13:23 - I whispered it 'cause I have a problem
13:24 talking about DC characters.
13:27 I don't know if I was programmed or not,
13:29 but I was in this room with a lot of flashing lights once.
13:32 Long story, thanks Kevin.
13:34 Well, that's done.
13:35 Look what you got.
13:36 This is the most ectomorphic this man has ever been.
13:41 Well, Chris, Robert, we made it through all the boards.
13:44 I thought it was fun.
13:46 I think the time just flew by.
13:47 - Flew by, I learned a bit.
13:48 I learned a bit.
13:49 Until next time.
13:50 (explosion)