Robert Downey Jr. (27 photos)

Robert Downey Jr., with his reputation as the “bad boy of Hollywood” (drugs, girls, police reports) has an undeniable charm that captivates almost at first sight. His acting background includes a wide variety of roles from Charlie Chaplin in an arthouse film of the early nineties to Iron Man in a blockbuster last year. Most recently, Downey's latest work, the film Sherlock Holmes, was released.

1) Robert Downey Jr. leaves a handprint in the concrete on the Avenue of Stars near the Chinese Theater in Hollywood, California, December 7, 2009. “It’s somehow strange that I’ll be there now,” the actor shared his impressions with a journalist from Entertainment Tonight, “I remember Once in my childhood we lived here not far from the alley and I often walked here, looking at all these names ... "

2) Wax figure of Robert Downey Jr. in his latest role as Sherlock Holmes, stands on the platform of London's Baker Street Underground station. Soon she will be taken to a permanent place of residence in the Madame Tussauds Museum in London.

3) Jude Law and Robert Downey Jr. as Dr. Watson and Sherlock Holmes in the film “Sherlock Holmes.” The film is based on a comic book by Lionel Wigram. The new Holmes will be much more daring than previous versions of Conan Doyle's hero, and besides, he will be equally impeccable in his use of both fists and a sword. (Warner Bros. Pictures)

4) In The Soloist, from Atonement director Joe Wright, Jamie Foxx plays Nathaniel Ayers, a former musical genius turned homeless. Newspaper columnist Steve Lopez (Robert Downey Jr.) finds him on the streets of Los Angeles. (DreamWorks Pictures)

5) Downey and his wife Susan arrived at the 81st Annual Academy Awards on February 22, 2009 in Los Angeles. Downey was nominated for Best Supporting Actor for his role in Tropic Thunder, but the award went to the late Heath Ledger. (Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)

6) Downey took on the controversial role of Kirk Lazarus in Troopers. Lazarus, a serious Australian actor, changes his skin color to become an African-American soldier in a film about the Vietnam War. Downey contributed several quotes to the film that have become quotable classics, such as, "Man, I'm not out of character until I score the movie for DVD." (DreamWorks Pictures)

7) Downey and his son Indio attend the Los Angeles Lakers game against the Utah Jazz at Staples Center on May 4, 2008 in Los Angeles. Indio is the son of Downey and his ex-wife Deborah Falconer. (Noel Vasquez/Getty Images)

8) Downey wowed both fans and critics with his role as Tony Stark in Jon Favreau's Iron Man. Stark is a wealthy entrepreneur who, after being kidnapped by terrorists, built himself an iron suit to escape. He then realizes that he can use his suit to fight evil. Downey brought a certain charm to the character. The sequel is already being filmed. (Paramount Pictures)

9) Downey at a press conference for the film "Iron Man" at the Shinagawa Prince Hotel on September 3, 2008 in Tokyo. The film's worldwide box office gross was $582 million. (Koichi Kamoshida/Getty Images)

10) In David Fincher's 2007 film Zodiac, Downey played reporter Paul Avery, who unsuccessfully tried to track down the Zodiac killer in the 1970s. Avery's career falls apart when the killer's trail goes cold. (Paramount Pictures)

11) Downey starred as Jim Barris in Richard Linklater's 2006 film A Scanner Darkly. The film takes place in suburban Orange County, California, in a future where America has lost the drug war. A stubborn undercover cop (Keanu Reeves) is ordered to spy on his friends and ends up becoming paranoid to the point of absurdity. The film is based on the book by Philip K. Dick. It was shot digitally and then animated using rotoscoping, where each frame is drawn on top of the real thing.

12) Downey starred in the 2006 film The Shaggy Daddy as Dr. Kozak, a scientist who kidnaps a 300-year-old cattle dog to discover its secret to longevity. But when the dog escapes and bites Deputy District Attorney Dave Douglas (Tim Allen), he turns into a dog himself. (Walt Disney Pictures)

13) Dianne Wiest and Robert Downey Jr. starred in the 2006 film How to Know Your Saints. The film is a drama about a boy growing up in Astoria, New York in the 1980s. When all his friends either die or end up in prison or drug addicts, he begins to believe that several so-called saints saved him from this fate. (First Look Media)

14) Downey attends the D&G Cannes Party at the Hotel Martinez during the 59th International Cannes Film Festival on May 26, 2006 in Cannes, France. (Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images)

15) In the 2005 film Kiss Bang Bang, a thief (Downey) comes to Los Angeles to audition for a movie role and finds himself at the center of a murder investigation with his high school sweetheart (Michelle Monaghan) and a gay detective (Val Kilmer), who coached him to audition. (Warner Bros.)

16) Downey poses in front of a poster at the Virgin Megastore on November 23, 2004 in Los Angeles, where he unveiled his first CD. Downey sings and plays piano on the album. (Kevin Winter/Getty Images)

17) Photos of Dani in his personnel file after his arrest on November 25, 2000 in Palm Springs, California for drug possession. Thanks to an anonymous call, police learned the number of the hotel room where Downey was later detained with cocaine and methamphetamine. (Getty Images)

18) Downey received the award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in the television series Ally McBeal at the 58th Annual Golden Globe Awards in Beverly Hills, California on January 21, 2001. Downey was fired from the project after two arrests in late 2000. (Lucy Nicholson/AFP - Getty Images)

19) County sheriff's deputies lead Downey, who was sentenced to six months in prison for violating his parole on a drug charge, on December 8, 1997 in Malibu, California. On October 17, Downey's sentence was revoked when his lawyer told authorities that the actor had violated a court order by using drugs and alcohol in September. (Nick Ut/AP)

20) Downey in Malibu Municipal Court for his hearing on July 29, 1996. Downey was sentenced to three years in prison after he failed another drug test in 1999. After spending a year in a non-punitive substance abuse treatment facility in Corcoran, California, the actor was released on $5,000 bail. (Stewart Cook/Getty Images)

21) Downey played television reporter Wayne Gale in Oliver Stone's 1994 film Natural Born Killers. The film tells the story of two serial killers, played by Woody Harrelson and Juliette Lewis, and a reporter, played by Downey, who praised the killers but was later killed by them. (Warner Bros. Pictures)

22) Downey was nominated for an Oscar for his starring role in the 1992 film Chaplin. In the biography of the great silent film actor, director Richard Attenborough depicted the life of the sometimes controversial director and actor. For this role, Downey received a BAFTA award for Best Actor. (TriStar Pictures/Everett Collection)

23) Downey met Sarah Jessica Parker on the set of the 1984 film The Baby. The couple separated in 1991. Downey also dated actress Marisa Tomei before marrying Deborah Falconer in 1992. (Zuma Press via Newscom)

24) Downey starred with Andrew McCarthy and Jamie Gertz in the 1987 film Less Than Zero. The role in this film became almost prophetic for Downey - he played a drug addict who could not fight his demons. Roger Ebert called Downey's performance "so real and subtle and obvious that it's scary." (20th Century Fox/Everett Collection)

25) Downey co-starred with Molly Ringwald in James Toback's 1987 film The Hitman, in which Downey played a womanizer who finds love in the daughter of a mobster. Toback remained loyal to Downey during his battle with drug addiction, casting him in films like Love Triangle and Black and White when other directors turned him down. (20th Century Fox/Everett Collection)

26) In 1985, Downey joined the cast of Saturday Night Live. Starring (from left) Nora Dunn, Danitra Vance, Randy Quaid, Robert Downey Jr., Anthony Michael-Hall, Terry Sweeney, Joan Cusack and Jon Lovitz. Downey was dropped from the show the following year due to low ratings. (Everett Collection)

27) In the 1985 film Marvels of Science, Downey played a bully alongside Anthony Michael Hall and Ilan Mitchell-Smith. This film about two nerds who managed to create the perfect woman was one of those that secured Downey a place in the acting group “Brat Pack”. (Universal Pictures/Everett Collection)