The international premiere of the independent film portrait of a rebellious director took place recently at the Telluride Film Festival, and it will next be seen at the New York Film Festival.
The documentary Sr., which stars Robert Downey Jr. and Chris Smith (Fyre) and is about the unconventional independent director Robert Downey Sr., has been picked up by Netflix and will receive a full-fledged Oscar campaign this season, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
The movie on Downey Jr.’s father, who passed away at age 85 in July 2021, will be released on the streamer before the end of the year. Downey Jr. attended the world premiere earlier this month at the Telluride Film Festival, where THR called it “original and moving.”
Next, on October 10 and 11, the New York Film Festival will host a screening of the movie, which examines Downey Srlife .’s and career (he is best known for the 1969 Madison Avenue satire Putney Swope) as well as themes like mortality and resolving generational dysfunction (the relationship between Sr. and Jr. is prominently featured).
Team Downey, the production business established by Downey Jr. and Susan Downey, and Library Films collaborated to create Sr. The fantasy television programme Sweet Tooth, which is entering its second season on Netflix, was originally produced in partnership with Team Downey. Smith, a five-time Emmy nominee, previously helmed the Netflix productions Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond, Bad Vegan, Operation Varsity Blues, and Fyre (a huge smash for the service).
The Downeys, who co-produced the movie with Emily Barclay Ford and Kevin Ford, expressed their gratitude to Netflix for working with them on such a deeply personal project in a statement. They are the perfect place for our unusual, frequently absurd, brutally in-depth devotion.
Smith said, “Sr. said ‘trust anything, and anything may happen’ on the first day of filming, and it ended up becoming the project’s compass. What first seemed to be a simple documentary rapidly turned into anything but. It’s basically the only way you could try to make something about the two Downeys knowing what I know today. It was a joy and a life-affirming experience to try to capture some glimpses of the highs, lows, and everything in-between. Larger than life, but open and human as ever.