Robert Downey Jr. heaped praise on Margot Robbie for her performance in Barbie in the wake of her Oscars snub.
The 58-year-old actor joined Sterling K. Brown and Willem Dafoe for the latest episode of SAG-AFTRA Foundation Conversation series on Tuesday.
The trio were discussing the significance of small gestures to get the point across during acting, with Brown expressing, “I never tire of watching someone just listen on camera.”
Downey chimed in with the example of Margot listening to her costar America Ferrera’s minutes-long monologue in one scene of the 2023 comedy-fantasy film.
Also Read: Margot Robbie responds to Oscar snub controversy, emphasizing cultural impact
“Margot Robbie is not getting enough credit, in my opinion,” the Iron Man alum weighed in.
“America [Ferrera] has this amazing speech. And by the way she nails it! I’m watching it and go, ‘Wow, that was a really tough one. That’s like a one act play. The whole movie hinges on it’,” he continued.
“But it’s the cuts away to Robbie so actively listening that I realize Greta is really on to something here. But it’s Robbie who had to trust … and it’s hard when someone who has the f****** two-page passage and they go, ‘Ok now let’s jump in and get Bob,’ and you’re like, ‘I’ve been listening to this all day and now I have to make it work!'”
Downey’s acknowledgement comes after the Academy sparked outrage for not nominating Robbie in the Best Lead Actress category.
Meanwhile, Ferrera landed her first Oscars nomination for her role as Best Supporting Actress.
