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The ‘Iron Man’ star says that the idea behind his upcoming Discovery+ series started with a personal question: “What are you trying to prove?”
By Chris Gardner
Robert Downey Jr. took a long look at his impressive car collection and asked himself a tough question: “You schmuck … what are you trying to prove?” So explained the actor during a recent sit-down with THR’s Scott Feinberg when asked about his upcoming Discovery+ docuseries Downey’s Dream Cars.
The unscripted series — produced by Team Downey, the production banner he founded with wife Susan, along with Boat Rocker Media’s Matador Content — will see a team of experts reimagine his prized cars to be more eco-friendly. “I’m going to sweepstakes them and donate all the proceeds to green tech companies,” he said as part of the chat that focused primarily on his Netflix doc Sr., “because this will be my legacy.”
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When the unscripted series was announced last year, Downey said in a statement that his goal was “to showcase that it’s possible to keep the integrity of classic cars while leveraging new tech and innovation to make them more eco-friendly.”
Downey’s Dream Cars is executive produced by Robert Downey Jr., Susan Downey and Emily Barclay Ford for Team Downey; along with Jay Peterson, Todd Lubin, Dave Larzelere and Ben Wood. Kyle Wheeler is senior executive producer, and Paola Espinosa is coordinating producer for Discovery+.
Speaking of legacy, many might think he would hold his Marvel filmography in high regard considering how his successful turn as Iron Man set the stage for Hollywood’s biggest box office franchise. Downey said during the conversation that he’s still learning more about the hit film and how many close to it were prepared for it to tank.
“Not too many people were thinking that Iron Man was even going to have an opening weekend or, you know, do much of anything so we were a little bit left alone,” he explained. “I find out more every day about how that thing was financed. It was basically ready to be like written off if it tanked. It was the perfect thing where there were not a lot of creatively aggressive eyes on us. … I remember Jeff Bridges [saying], ‘Man, it’s like we’re doing a $200 million independent movie, man.’”
This story first appeared in the Jan. 5 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. Click here to subscribe.
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