Robert Downey Jr. was recognized as a “Disney Legend” on Friday, joining such icons as Jim Henson, Carrie Fisher, and Ratigan from The Great Mouse Detective (I assume). The award, which was also presented this year to Ming-Na Wen, Hans Zimmer, and James Earl Jones, among others, is a “recognition of talent, a celebration of achievement, and an expression of profound gratitude to the remarkable men and women who have made an indelible mark on our company and our creative legacy,” according to Disney head honcho Robert Iger. It’s also an acknowledgment that you, too, can get arrested for smoking weed at Disneyland, and still eventually be called a Legend (and a legend).
“Here’s a bit of trivia for you, the very first time I went to Disneyland I was transported to another place… within moments of being arrested,” Downey Jr. said during his acceptance speech. “I was brought to a surprisingly friendly processing center. Given a stern warning and returned, if memory servers, to one very disappointed group chaperone. I would like to make amends for whoever had to contain me for smoking pot in the gondola without a license.”
The Avengers: Endgame star, who starred in the first movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (2008’s Iron Man), apologized for “insinuating that pot smoking licenses for the gondola are in any way attainable, or for any of the other park attractions… Maybe the Imagineers, but that’s their own business.”
If Succession has taught us anything, it’s that amusement park employees, especially the poor bastards stuck in the costumes, are always high — it’s not RDJ’s fault that couldn’t hide the smoke in a Goofy costume, like they do. I wonder who his favorite Disney character is (it’s totally Crush).
(Via Variety)
