Palisadian Robert Downey Jr. Wins First Oscar, Several Residents Present Awards

By SARAH SHMERLING | Editor-in-Chief

In a ceremony hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, one Palisadian celebrated his first Academy Award win during the 96th Oscars on March 10 at Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood.

Palisadian Robert Downey Jr. won Best Actor in a Supporting Role for “Oppenheimer,” a category that also included Sterling K. Brown for “American Fiction,” Robert De Niro for “Killers of the Flower Moon,” Mark Ruffalo for “Poor Things” and Ryan Gosling for “Barbie.”

Though Downey Jr. has many other accolades, this marked his first Oscar. He had been nominated twice before.

“I’d like to thank my terrible childhood and the Academy, in that order,” Downey Jr. said when accepting the award. “I’d like to thank my veterinarian—I meant, wife, Susan Downey over there. She found me a snarling rescue pet and you loved me back to life, and that’s why I’m here.”

Palisadian Bradley Cooper was nominated for Actor in a Leading Role for “Maestro,” a category that went to Cillian Murphy for “Oppenheimer” and included Colman Domingo for “Rustin,” Paul Giamatti for “The Holdovers” and Jeffrey Wright for “American Fiction.”

Cooper has been nominated for Oscars nine previous times, including Best Actor in 2013 for “Silver Linings Playbook,” in 2015 for “American Sniper” and 2019 for “A Star is Born.”

As producers of “Maestro,” Cooper, fellow Palisadian Steven Spielberg, Fred Berner, Amy Durning and Kristie Macosko Krieger were nominated for Best Picture, a category that also went to “Oppenheimer” and included “American Fiction,” “Anatomy of a Fall,” “Barbie,” “The Holdovers,” “Killers of the Flower Moon,” “Past Lives,” “Poor Things” and “The Zone of Interest.”

Cooper was also nominated for Writing (Original Screenplay) alongside Josh Singer, a category that went to “Anatomy of a Fall” and included “The Holdovers,” “May December” and “Past Lives.”

There was no shortage of Palisadian presenters throughout the ceremony, including Sally Field, Spielberg, Mary Steenburgen, Jamie Lee Curtis, Michelle Pfeiffer, Michael Keaton and Palisades Charter High School alum Forest Whitaker.