Robert Downey Jr., Oscar winner for ‘Oppenheimer’, acted at Geva Theatre at age 17

ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Robert Downey Jr., who took home his first-ever Oscar on Sunday for his role in the biopic “Oppenheimer”, acted at Geva Theatre in Rochester early in his career.

Downey Jr. said he was thankful for his time in Rochester during an interview with Vanity Fair about “Oppenheimer”, the blockbuster film that took home seven awards including best picture. Downey Jr. won for best supporting actor.

Here’s what Downey Jr. said about his time in Rochester during the interview:

“If I could talk back to that 17-year-old who was doing regional theater in Rochester, I would say, guess what? It’s going to go pretty well. It’s going to be a lot of ups and downs and I’m not going to tell you the specifics because you’d get too scared. But it turns out in a good place.”

Downey Jr. played the role of businessman Lewis Strauss in the film. He’s also known for portraying Iron Man in The Avengers franchise. Downey Jr. had two previous Oscar nominations, best actor in 1993 for “Chaplin” and best supporting actor in 2009 for “Tropic Thunder”.