Robert Downey Jr. Thanks His 'Veterinarian, I Mean Wife' Susan in Oscars Speech: 'You Loved Me Back to Life'

Mar. 15, 2025

Robert Downey Jr.is an Oscar winner — but he’d be nothing without his wifeSusan!

The star won Best Supporting Actor at the 2024Oscarson Sunday for his role inOppenheimer. With the win, Downey Jr. beat outAmerican Fiction’sSterling K. Brown,Killers of the Flower Moon’sRobert De Niro,Barbie’sRyan GoslingandPoor Things’Mark Ruffalo.

He then joked, “I’d like to thank my veterinarian — I meant wife — Susan Downey over there. She found me, a snarling rescue pet, and loved me back to life. That’s why I am here. Thank you.”

Later, he thanked directorChristopher Nolan, the writer, producer and director ofOppenheimer, as well as producerEmma Thomasand his costarsCillian Murphy,Emily BluntandMatt Damon.

“Here’s my little secret: I needed this job more than it needed me. Chris knew it, Emma made sure the she wrapped — surrounded me with one of the greatest cast and crews of all time,” he said. “Emily, Cillian, Matt Damon … it was fantastic and I stand here before you a better man because of it. You know, what we do is meaningful, and the stuff that we decide to make is important.”

Downey Jr., 58, also thanked his stylist, publicist and entertainment lawyer, joking that his attorney of 40 years spent half of it “trying to get me insured and bailing me out.” He then closed out his speech with a shoutout to histhree kidsAvri,ExtonandIndio.

Robert Downey Jr. in ‘Oppenheimer’.Melinda Sue Gordon

Melinda Sue Gordon

For his performance in the biopicOppenheimer, Downey Jr. received his third nod at the Academy Awards, last nominated in 2009 forTropic Thunder.

Opposite Murphy, Downey Jr.’s Admiral Lewis Strauss serves asJ. Robert Oppenheimer’s primary antagonist as the physicist navigates the moral and emotional dilemmas of creating the atomic bomb.

Robert Downey Jr. winning at the Oscars 2024.PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty Images

PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty Images

At the film’s premiere last summer, Downey Jr. proudly said aboutOppenheimer: “Just going to flat-out say it —this is the best film I’ve ever been in.”

Claire Folger/MGM/Everett

Brown, 47, landed his first Oscar nomination for his work inAmerican Fiction. Playing the recently divorced brother ofJeffrey Wright’s Monk Ellison, theEmmywinner portrayed a newly out gay man.

In addition to Brown’s nomination, costar Wright, 58, was recognized for his leading role. The film received a total of five nods, contending for Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Original Score as well.

Apple Original Films

DirectorMartin Scorsese’s epicKillers of the Flower Moonsees De Niro, 80, as William King Hale, a remorseless crime boss responsible for the murders of the Osage Nation.

The Irishmanactor previously won Oscars for Best Supporting Actor in 1974 forThe Godfather Part IIand Best Actor in 1981 forRaging Bull.

Scorseserecently told PEOPLE of the actor, “When Bob commits, he starts digging in with research, questions about absolutely everything, from what the character wears to what he eats for breakfast. The search and the discoveries never stop.”

Warner Bros. Pictures

Gosling’s Kenergy garnered rave reviews after the summer blockbusterBarbie. TheLa La Landactor, 43, added a third Oscar nomination to his count with his role as the Mattel doll’s head-over-heels boyfriend Ken.

The star said in a previous statement about his nomination, “There is no Ken without Barbie, and there is noBarbiemovie withoutGreta GerwigandMargot Robbie, the two people most responsible for this history-making, globally-celebrated film. No recognition would be possible for anyone on the film without their talent, grit and genius.”

20th Century Studios

The Avengersstar has three previous nominations for Best Supporting Actor at the Oscars: for 2010’sThe Kids Are All Right, 2014’sFoxcatcherand 2015’sSpotlight.

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source: people.com