Robert Downey Jr. says he was scared about being “crucified” for playing a black man in the movie Tropic Thunder.
In Tropic Thunder, Downey Jr. played Kirk Lazarus, an Australian actor who has plastic surgery to darken his skin for the role of a black soldier fighting in Vietnam.
“My reaction was, like, find someone else who needs to take some big ass risk and get crucified for it,” Downey Jr. said.
“But then I thought there really is a way if people understand the concept of the movie – to make it entertaining and not make it stupid or offensive. Did I nail it or am I in trouble?”
Downey Jr.’s role as Lazarus was recently nominated for a supporting actor Oscar.