Lessons for Shia LaBeouf: What He Can Learn From Hollywood's Reformed Bad Boys
By Emily Christianson, Hollywood.com Staff
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Tuesday, August 12, 2008
ROBERT DOWNEY JR.
Rap Sheet
After a successful career through the eighties and early nineties (including an Oscar nod for 1992’s Chaplin), Robert Downey Jr. hit a speed bump … or two or three or four in the mid-nineties with several drug-related arrests. He once told a judge in 1999, “It's like I have a loaded gun in my mouth and my finger's on the trigger, and I like the taste of the gunmetal.”
Notable naughty moments included speeding down Sunset Blvd. with heroin, cocaine and an unloaded .357 Magnum, wandering into a neighbor’s home and falling asleep in an empty bed, and a Thanksgiving day 911 call in Palm Springs that led to an arrest for possession of cocaine and valium.
Career Comeback
It took several stints in jail and rehab before Downey got his life back on track. A few roles here and there like The Singing Detective and Gothika helped garnish credibility. By 2005 he was back in full swing with Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Good Night, and Good Luck and A Scanner Darkly. Downey’s popularity went through the roof in 2008 with his summer hit Iron Man, grossing more than $300 million at the box office. Look for the native New Yorker, 43, next week in Paramount’s Tropic Thunder alongside Ben Stiller and Jack Black.
Lesson Learned
A break might be beneficial, just try not to spend it in jail, court or rehab.