For his supporting performance in “Oppenheimer,” Robert Downey Jr. receives his first Oscar.

Robert Downey Jr. receives his first Oscar(Oppenheimer)

After three decades of waiting for his first acting nomination, veteran actor Robert Downey Jr. finally won an Oscar on Sunday.

For his depiction of Rear Adm. Lewis Strauss in “Oppenheimer,” which was praised as one of his best performances in years, Downey won best supporting actor.

For one of Hollywood’s most versatile actors, whose career has been characterized by severe disappointments, it was the third total Oscar nomination.

Downey made a lighthearted address, pausing for laughs from the audience, saying, “I’d like to thank my terrible childhood and the academy — in that order.”

He also thanked Susan, his wife. “I’m here because you brought me back to life with your love.”

After Downey’s first Oscar nomination 30 years ago, at the age of 28, he was arrested several times for drug-related offenses and served a year in prison.

The actor expressed his gratitude for not winning best actor in 1993 for “Chaplin” in an interview with “The View.”

“I was young and crazy,” he said. “It would have put me under the impression that I was on the right track.”

Downey also received an Oscar nod in 2008 for a supporting role in “Tropic Thunder.”

Sunday’s win solidified Downey’s frontrunner status this awards season. He also took home the top honor for supporting actor at the Golden Globes, BAFTA Film Awards, SAG Awards and Critics Choice Awards.

“Why me? Why now? Why do things seem to be going my way?” he said while accepting his SAG AWARD.

Downey beat Sterling K. Brown for “American Fiction,” Ryan Gosling for “Barbie,” Mark Ruffalo for “Poor Things” and Robert De Niro for “Killers of the Flower Moon.”

“Oppenheimer,” Christopher Nolan’s three-hour deep dive into the development and fallout of the atomic bomb during World War II, won seven Oscars on Sunday, including best picture, best director for Nolan and best actor for Cillian Murphy. The film entered the night with 13 nominations.

“What we do is meaningful,” Downey said onstage Sunday, “and the stuff we decide to make is important.”

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