(Left-right:) Robert Downey Jr. in 2024; on “Saturday Night Live” in 1986.Photo:Michael Blackshire / Los Angeles Times via Getty; Alan Singer/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via GettyRobert Downey Jr.has become an Oscar winner— and the first formerSaturday Night Livecast member to do so.TheOppenheimeractor joinedSNL’s ranks from 1985 to 1986 as a main cast member on its 11th season. Also hired that year were Joan Cusack, Nora Dunn, Jon Lovitz, Dennis Miller, Danitra Vance andDamon Wayans.For many of those performers, the conclusion of that 18-episode season also marked the end of theirSNLtenure. Downey, 58,called it“arguably the worst season in its history” in a 2020 interview with fellow alumJimmy FallononThe Tonight Show.“The only thing I wrote that made it almost close to air was this ridiculous sketch called ‘Suitcase Boy,’ where I came out with a suitcase zipped up around my neck and said a bunch of non sequiturs,” he recalled at the time. “And it was so not funny, except to me and my weirdo friends.”For playingLewis Straussin directorChristopher Nolan’sOppenheimer,Downey won the Academy Awardfor Best Supporting Actor at Sunday’s ceremony. TheIron Manstar had previously been nominated for 1992’sChaplinand 2008’sTropic Thunder.Robert Downey Jr. wins Best Supporting Actor for “Oppenheimer” on March 10, 2024.PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty ImagesThough he is the first to win an Oscar trophy, Downey joined the list of nineSNLcast regulars who have also received nominations, which stretches back to the first:Randy Quaid, a Supporting Actor nominee for the 1973 Jack Nicholson movieThe Last Detail. Quaid, now 73, also starred onSNL’s 11th season with Downey.The late George Coe was another main cast member whose Oscar nod predated his time onSNL; before appearing on the show throughout 1975 and 1976, he earned a Best Live-Action Short Film nod for 1968’sThe Dove, a parody of Ingmar Bergman’s films.(Left-right:) Nora Dunn, Danitra Vance, Randy Quaid, Robert Downey Jr., Anthony Michael Hall, Terry Sweeney, Joan Cusack and Jon Lovitz on “Saturday Night Live”.NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via GettyCusack, one of Downey’s season 11 costars, launched her screen career in the years following her time on the sketch show. The actress is a two-time Supporting Actress nominee, for 1988’sWorking Girland 1997’sIn & Out.Dan Aykroyd, one ofSNL’s most prolific alumni following his 1975-1979 run on the show, earned a Supporting Actor Oscar nod for 1989 Best Picture winnerDriving Miss Daisy. Overlapping with him from 1977 to 1980 wasBill Murray, an Oscar-nominated lead actor for 2003’sLost in Translation.Michael McKeanhas the rare distinction of hosting and being a musical guest onSNLprior to joining its cast as a regular. After his 1994-1995 tenure, the actor earned an Oscar nomination for Best Song — for 2003’sA Mighty Windditty “A Kiss at the End of the Rainbow," which he wrote with wife Annette O’Toole.Finally,Eddie Murphyreceived his Academy recognition as a Supporting Actor nominee in 2006’sDreamgirls, years after getting his start onSNLfrom 1980 to 1984. AndKristen Wiig, the show’s regular cast member for an impressive seven-year run starting in 2005, scored an Oscar nod forBridesmaids’Original Screenplay toward the end of that run in 2011.Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.Robert Downey Jr. on “Saturday Night Live” in 1986.Al Levine/NBCU Photo Bank via GettyIn a 2019Off Camera with Sam Jonesinterview, Downey revealed it was his friendship with fellow “Brat Pack” memberAnthony Michael Hallthat got him a foot in theSNLdoor.“He, in a way, was my firstJon Favreau,” he said of theBreakfast Clubstar, who also joined the show’s 11th season. “He was someone who said to me, ‘I’m going to go doSNLand I’m gonna get you an audition. I bet you’re gonna get yourself on the show too, and they’ll be lucky to have us.’”
(Left-right:) Robert Downey Jr. in 2024; on “Saturday Night Live” in 1986.Photo:Michael Blackshire / Los Angeles Times via Getty; Alan Singer/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty
Michael Blackshire / Los Angeles Times via Getty; Alan Singer/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty
Robert Downey Jr.has become an Oscar winner— and the first formerSaturday Night Livecast member to do so.TheOppenheimeractor joinedSNL’s ranks from 1985 to 1986 as a main cast member on its 11th season. Also hired that year were Joan Cusack, Nora Dunn, Jon Lovitz, Dennis Miller, Danitra Vance andDamon Wayans.For many of those performers, the conclusion of that 18-episode season also marked the end of theirSNLtenure. Downey, 58,called it“arguably the worst season in its history” in a 2020 interview with fellow alumJimmy FallononThe Tonight Show.“The only thing I wrote that made it almost close to air was this ridiculous sketch called ‘Suitcase Boy,’ where I came out with a suitcase zipped up around my neck and said a bunch of non sequiturs,” he recalled at the time. “And it was so not funny, except to me and my weirdo friends.”For playingLewis Straussin directorChristopher Nolan’sOppenheimer,Downey won the Academy Awardfor Best Supporting Actor at Sunday’s ceremony. TheIron Manstar had previously been nominated for 1992’sChaplinand 2008’sTropic Thunder.Robert Downey Jr. wins Best Supporting Actor for “Oppenheimer” on March 10, 2024.PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty ImagesThough he is the first to win an Oscar trophy, Downey joined the list of nineSNLcast regulars who have also received nominations, which stretches back to the first:Randy Quaid, a Supporting Actor nominee for the 1973 Jack Nicholson movieThe Last Detail. Quaid, now 73, also starred onSNL’s 11th season with Downey.The late George Coe was another main cast member whose Oscar nod predated his time onSNL; before appearing on the show throughout 1975 and 1976, he earned a Best Live-Action Short Film nod for 1968’sThe Dove, a parody of Ingmar Bergman’s films.(Left-right:) Nora Dunn, Danitra Vance, Randy Quaid, Robert Downey Jr., Anthony Michael Hall, Terry Sweeney, Joan Cusack and Jon Lovitz on “Saturday Night Live”.NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via GettyCusack, one of Downey’s season 11 costars, launched her screen career in the years following her time on the sketch show. The actress is a two-time Supporting Actress nominee, for 1988’sWorking Girland 1997’sIn & Out.Dan Aykroyd, one ofSNL’s most prolific alumni following his 1975-1979 run on the show, earned a Supporting Actor Oscar nod for 1989 Best Picture winnerDriving Miss Daisy. Overlapping with him from 1977 to 1980 wasBill Murray, an Oscar-nominated lead actor for 2003’sLost in Translation.Michael McKeanhas the rare distinction of hosting and being a musical guest onSNLprior to joining its cast as a regular. After his 1994-1995 tenure, the actor earned an Oscar nomination for Best Song — for 2003’sA Mighty Windditty “A Kiss at the End of the Rainbow," which he wrote with wife Annette O’Toole.Finally,Eddie Murphyreceived his Academy recognition as a Supporting Actor nominee in 2006’sDreamgirls, years after getting his start onSNLfrom 1980 to 1984. AndKristen Wiig, the show’s regular cast member for an impressive seven-year run starting in 2005, scored an Oscar nod forBridesmaids’Original Screenplay toward the end of that run in 2011.Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.Robert Downey Jr. on “Saturday Night Live” in 1986.Al Levine/NBCU Photo Bank via GettyIn a 2019Off Camera with Sam Jonesinterview, Downey revealed it was his friendship with fellow “Brat Pack” memberAnthony Michael Hallthat got him a foot in theSNLdoor.“He, in a way, was my firstJon Favreau,” he said of theBreakfast Clubstar, who also joined the show’s 11th season. “He was someone who said to me, ‘I’m going to go doSNLand I’m gonna get you an audition. I bet you’re gonna get yourself on the show too, and they’ll be lucky to have us.’”
Robert Downey Jr.has become an Oscar winner— and the first formerSaturday Night Livecast member to do so.
TheOppenheimeractor joinedSNL’s ranks from 1985 to 1986 as a main cast member on its 11th season. Also hired that year were Joan Cusack, Nora Dunn, Jon Lovitz, Dennis Miller, Danitra Vance andDamon Wayans.
For many of those performers, the conclusion of that 18-episode season also marked the end of theirSNLtenure. Downey, 58,called it“arguably the worst season in its history” in a 2020 interview with fellow alumJimmy FallononThe Tonight Show.
“The only thing I wrote that made it almost close to air was this ridiculous sketch called ‘Suitcase Boy,’ where I came out with a suitcase zipped up around my neck and said a bunch of non sequiturs,” he recalled at the time. “And it was so not funny, except to me and my weirdo friends.”
For playingLewis Straussin directorChristopher Nolan’sOppenheimer,Downey won the Academy Awardfor Best Supporting Actor at Sunday’s ceremony. TheIron Manstar had previously been nominated for 1992’sChaplinand 2008’sTropic Thunder.
Robert Downey Jr. wins Best Supporting Actor for “Oppenheimer” on March 10, 2024.PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty Images
PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty Images
Though he is the first to win an Oscar trophy, Downey joined the list of nineSNLcast regulars who have also received nominations, which stretches back to the first:Randy Quaid, a Supporting Actor nominee for the 1973 Jack Nicholson movieThe Last Detail. Quaid, now 73, also starred onSNL’s 11th season with Downey.
The late George Coe was another main cast member whose Oscar nod predated his time onSNL; before appearing on the show throughout 1975 and 1976, he earned a Best Live-Action Short Film nod for 1968’sThe Dove, a parody of Ingmar Bergman’s films.
(Left-right:) Nora Dunn, Danitra Vance, Randy Quaid, Robert Downey Jr., Anthony Michael Hall, Terry Sweeney, Joan Cusack and Jon Lovitz on “Saturday Night Live”.NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty
NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty
Cusack, one of Downey’s season 11 costars, launched her screen career in the years following her time on the sketch show. The actress is a two-time Supporting Actress nominee, for 1988’sWorking Girland 1997’sIn & Out.
Dan Aykroyd, one ofSNL’s most prolific alumni following his 1975-1979 run on the show, earned a Supporting Actor Oscar nod for 1989 Best Picture winnerDriving Miss Daisy. Overlapping with him from 1977 to 1980 wasBill Murray, an Oscar-nominated lead actor for 2003’sLost in Translation.
Michael McKeanhas the rare distinction of hosting and being a musical guest onSNLprior to joining its cast as a regular. After his 1994-1995 tenure, the actor earned an Oscar nomination for Best Song — for 2003’sA Mighty Windditty “A Kiss at the End of the Rainbow," which he wrote with wife Annette O’Toole.
Finally,Eddie Murphyreceived his Academy recognition as a Supporting Actor nominee in 2006’sDreamgirls, years after getting his start onSNLfrom 1980 to 1984. AndKristen Wiig, the show’s regular cast member for an impressive seven-year run starting in 2005, scored an Oscar nod forBridesmaids’Original Screenplay toward the end of that run in 2011.
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
Robert Downey Jr. on “Saturday Night Live” in 1986.Al Levine/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty
Al Levine/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty
In a 2019Off Camera with Sam Jonesinterview, Downey revealed it was his friendship with fellow “Brat Pack” memberAnthony Michael Hallthat got him a foot in theSNLdoor.
“He, in a way, was my firstJon Favreau,” he said of theBreakfast Clubstar, who also joined the show’s 11th season. “He was someone who said to me, ‘I’m going to go doSNLand I’m gonna get you an audition. I bet you’re gonna get yourself on the show too, and they’ll be lucky to have us.’”
source: people.com
