Robert Downey Jr.'s wife, Susan Downey, has been his muse since 2002. Or, as the Oscar-nominated "Oppenheimer" star put it in his SAG acceptance speech, "For 22 years, she has flawlessly portrayed a sane and rational individual who is happily married to an actor."
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Susan Downey (née Levin), 50, is a film producer originally from Illinois. She met Robert Downey Jr., 58, on set in 2002, and they tied the knot in 2005. The couple share two children: A son, Exton (12), and a daughter, Avri (9). Susan is also a stepmom to Robert's adult son Indio (30) from his previous marriage to actress Deborah Falconer.
From their all-important roles as parents to their joint film and TV projects, Robert and Susan have always leaned on their "magical" connection (and plenty of good humor) to make it all run smoothly. In fact, their relationship helped Downey Jr. overcome addiction and remain drug-free since 2003.
"I made it clear that, to stay with me, nothing could happen," Susan Downey told Harper's Bazaar in 2009. "I think he saw what we had. There was something magical there, something we couldn't put our finger on. He always says that we became this third thing when we got together—something that neither of us could have become by ourselves—and I think that's true."
Whatever that special spark is, it's served the couple well across two decades of love and laughter — and endless "passion projects," like the fairytale windmill house they call home. Read on for a deep-dive into Robert Downey Jr. and his wife Susan's love story.
They Met on the Set of 'Gothika'
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Susan was a producer on the 2003 thriller "Gothika" when she met Robert, who starred alongside Halle Berry in the film. Susan later recalled thinking Robert was "interesting but weird" after a cast lunch in Montreal.
"Everybody else ordered Japanese, but Robert told us how oatmeal was the 'superfood.' He brought his own packets of oatmeal to have at lunch. And he had this box of various herbs and stuff. And then he started doing these yoga moves," she told The Hollywood Reporter in 2014.
Evidently, weird has its perks. Robert and Susan quickly became an item and made their red carpet debut at the October 2003 premiere of "The Singing Detective" (pictured above).
They Tied the Knot in 2005
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In November 2003, just months into their relationship, Robert popped the question the night of Susan's 30th birthday. In a joint Oprah appearance in 2004, Susan quoted her then-fiancé's awkward proposal: "'I was wondering if, maybe, you'd wanna, like, be my wife one day.'"
Two years later, in August 2005, the couple got married in a star-studded ceremony on Long Island (pictured above). She wore a white satin dress and carried a bouquet of white and purple flowers; he coordinated in a navy pinstripe suit, purple scarf and casual sneakers. Billy Joel, Keanu Reeves and Sting were among the celebrity attendees.
The couple celebrated their 18th wedding anniversary on Instagram in August 2023 by recreating a sweet wedding-day snap of Robert kissing Susan on the cheek. "18 years, love still in bloom!!" Robert captioned the pics.
They Founded a Production Company, Team Downey
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Since meeting on a film set, Robert Downey Jr. and his wife have been partners in life and in business. In fact, she's responsible for Robert's Golden Globe-winning portrayal of Sherlock Holmes in Guy Ritchie's 2009-11 film series. Susan was a producer on the first film when she suggested Ritchie cast her hubby in the title role.
In 2010, the couple started their own production company, Team Downey. They've since produced a number of films and TV series under the banner, including "The Judge" (2014), HBO's "Perry Mason" (2020-23), "Dolittle" (2020), the hit Netflix series "Sweet Tooth" and "Sr.," Robert's 2022 documentary about his filmmaker father.
Of their working relationship, Susan cheekily told PEOPLE in 2014, "He's a little bit of a slower start in the morning than I am, so I have to make sure that there's enough coffee in his system before I start throwing questions his way."
Robert Downey Jr. and Susan Downey Have Two Kids
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The couple share two young children: 12-year-old son Exton Elias and a daughter, Avri Roel, 9. Robert announced Avri's birth in characteristic fashion on Facebook in 2014, writing:
"After 9 months of intensive development, Team Downey is pleased to announce our 2014 fall/winter project. Principal photography commenced 11-14 and will continue until she says, 'Dad! You are embarrassing me ... I'm 30, this has gotta stop.'"
He added that Avri was "accompanied by a variety of Susan's traits that have seemingly overwritten my 'junk DNA.'"
The couple largely keep their kids out of the spotlight, but they've spoken about the pleasures of making movies they can watch as a family. While promoting their "Dolittle" remake in 2020, Susan told Extra that it was "fun to pick something that our kids could see."
"Even though he's let our son see the Marvel movies—certain ones—they weren't able to see any of the movies that we've worked on."
They Live in a Windmill (Literally)
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Robert Downey Jr. and his wife split their time between some jaw-dropping abodes. They showed off their primary residence, a converted windmill house in the Hamptons, in a 2017 Architectural Digest tour that's garnered 29 million views.
"We wanted something we haven't seen a million times," Robert said of the colorful decor and giant grasshopper statue in the front yard. "We didn't set out to do something conspicuously wacky. We just enjoy a bit of whimsy and fun. And we definitely don't like boring."
Across the country, on their dreamy Malibu property, the couple built a dome-shaped guesthouse that runs entirely on solar and wind energy. The futuristic structure, a "passion project" that took seven years to complete, was featured on the cover of Purist in 2021.
But it's all par for the course for these two busybodies.
