Comeback Kid Mel Gibson and Iron Man Robert Downey Jr. have, to say the least, had their personal ups and downs... big time. Remember Mel's drunken, anti-semitic DUI stop and the meltdown of his marriage? He was effectively canceled by Hollywood.
And Robert Downey Jr.? Back in the 1990s, his public drug abuse landed him in prison. Talk about being totally canceled.
The two guys met in 1990 on the set of a mediocre movie called Air America. It was the corny tale of a CIA covert campaign in Laos. They bonded and bromance was in the air almost immediately. They share the same wacky sense of humor and, more importantly, both men are totally loyal to their friends, no matter what.
Mel helped Robert to get back on to the A-list after his stint in prison and Downey, for his part, publicly urged Hollywood to give Mel a second chance.
Bromance is one thing. Standing by a friend when virtually nobody else will, takes their relationship to a whole new level.
For Gibson, salvation came with 2016's Hacksaw Ridge. He was behind the camera, directing as only Mel Gibson can direct. And for Robert Downey Jr. his triumph was playing Iron Man in the Avengers franchise. And let's not forget his quirky Sherlock Holmes films.
So, let's trace the history of this bromance. Both men are flawed. But both men are totally loyal to their friends. They stick with them through thick and thin.
Robert Downey Jr. - From A-List To Blacklist
Downey was on top of the world when, in 1992, he was nominated for an Academy Award for his performance as Charlie Chaplin in Chaplin. Oh, he had had minor drug-related issues before that, but none of them were bad enough to derail his career.
Then in 1996, he was pulled over by the Los Angeles Police Department and found to be in possession of cocaine, heroin and a pistol. He was also arrested two weeks later when he was found stumbling around, obviously under the influence of drugs. He was sent to various lockdown, residential, and outpatient rehab programs to no good effect. He violated probation by not turning up for drug tests. And that's what finally landed him in prison 1999. He was sentenced to three years behind bars. From inside, Vanity Fair reported, he spoke of threats of violence and sexual aggression. He was, quite frankly, terrified.
As far as Hollywood was concerned, he was canceled, finished, washed up and blacklisted.
When he came out nobody wanted to know him, except maybe for Mel Gibson. Downey tried to get back into acting, but no bond companies would insure Downey. When the actor was considered for a roll in the 2003 movie The Singing Detective, no bond company would touch him with a barge pole. No insurance meant he was O-U-T.
So what did his buddy Mel Gibson do? He insured Downey Jr. himself, agreeing to pay compensation if Downey defaulted for any reason. It wasn't a very good movie, but he finished it. That was the beginning of his comeback.
Next, he did Kiss Kiss Bang Bang alongside Val Kilmer. And the rest, as they say, is history.
Downey Returns The Favor
In the 1990s, Mel Gibson was Hollywood royalty, directing and starring in Braveheart. Gibson won the Academy Award for Best Actor and the picture also received the Best Picture gong.
Like Downey Jr. in the 1990s, everybody knew Mel had some issues with alcohol. But it was not enough to derail his career until in 2006 he was pulled over on a DUI charge. The drunken mug shots were bad enough, but his references to "F***ing Jews" and calling a female office "sugar t*ts" were leaked by TMZ. The result? His wife Robyn divorced him. And when in 2010 he was recorded using the "n" word, some say a fed-up Hollywood blacklisted him.
But a few friends, including Robert Downey Jr. and Jodie Foster, stuck by him. Foster cast him in The Beaver in 2011 and Robert Downey Jr. very publicly urged Hollywood to give Gibson a second chance.
He made the plea in his comments when he received the American Cinematheque lifetime achievement award in 2011. According to the BBC, Downey said "Mel Gibson had helped him beat his drug and alcohol addiction issues and he wanted to return the favor".
It worked, eventually. Mel mended a few fences and by 2016 directed the multiple Oscar-nominated film, Hacksaw Ridge.
Both celebrities freely admit they would have never made it without the help of the other one. Their bond is still strong. They have been through the worst of times together and now enjoy the best of times together.
Since Hacksaw Ridge, Gibson has come back strong with 8 or so movie projects on the books. And Downey Jr. just keeps on taking Iron Man and Sherlock Holmes to the bank. They are back because they stuck together through thick and thin. And still do.