Another actor who made his name during the 1980s, Robert Downey Jr. showed huge potential during the time he spent associated with the Brat Pack and went on to justly earn himself an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor for his performance as Charlie Chaplin in 1992's Chaplin. His problems with alcohol and drugs from the mid-90s through to the early 2000s saw him out of action, but his return to cinema screens seemed to herald a second wind for the amiable star. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, A Scanner Darkly and Zodiac saw fine performances from Downey Jr. which unfortunately seemed to pave the way for a string of roles in which he seemed to play the same cool, calm and collected characters we're most familiar with. Of course, there's nothing wrong with doing the effortlessly cool thing, especially if you're as good at it as Downey Jr., but there's hardly a great deal of nuance between Iron Man/Tony Stark and Sherlock Holmes - the latter might be a lot of fun to watch (however unlike Sherlock Holmes he may be to fans of the literature), but he's hardly stretching himself out of his comfort zone.
