Robert Downey Jr recently won an Oscar in the Best Supporting Actor category for his last release Oppenheimer. The actor next will be a part of HBO's spy drama The Sympathiser. In a recent interview, Robert reflected on his journey from getting out of the grip of drug addiction to his maiden Oscar win. 

Robert Downey Jr on emotional healing

Accepting the Best Supporting Actor award, Downey peppered his deadpan speech with emotional moments, addressing the years he spent in the grip of drug addiction in the late '90s and early 2000s. He thanked his wife for "loving me back to life," along with his longtime lawyer, joking that the attorney had spent half of their 40 years together “trying to get me insured and bailing me out.”

"I think if you develop a moral psychology, things are a lot easier," Downey, 58, told People in this week's cover story. “And I think it's hard to explain away certain behaviours when there are ways to heal. So I have a lot of empathy for them, and I also am a little bit sceptical about anyone who doesn't lean into what they can do to improve the state of their compass. That's all.”

Standing next to him, Downey's wife Susan added, "I feel like anyone's journey, no matter how fraught or positive, whatever it is, it is your journey. There's nothing we would do differently." 

"Here's the interesting thing," she added. "I came from an incredibly stable household and Robert's was, let's say, less than that. And yet he's the one who brings the real kind of homey-ness to it, and I just make sure everything's working and running well," Susan further detailed.
 

Jeremy Renner lauds Robert Downey Jr

Away from the spotlight, people close to Downey say he has retained a low-key emphasis on helping others. "His ways are heartwarming," said fellow Avengers star Jeremy Renner, who was in the ICU last January following his horrific snowplough accident.

He noted that Downey checked in on him constantly. "We ended up having great chats on FaceTime like we were dating or something," recalled Renner.

(with inputs from ANI)