MANILA,, Philippines — Actor and newly-minted Oscar winner Robert Downey Jr. is set to make his first Broadway appearance later this year.
Downey will play the titular character in "McNeal," a new play by Pulitzer Prize winner and Tony nominee Ayad Akhtar with direction by Bartlett Sher.
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The actor confirmed his participation on social media, sharing a poster for the play.
"I knew I wanted to do Ayad's new play before I was done reading it, then hearing Bart would be directing at the Beaumont theater sealed the deal," he said. "It's been 40 years since I was last on 'the boards,' but hopefully I'll knock the dust off quick. 'McNeal' is a timely and important story about the future of creatives, and I intend to do it justice."
Lincoln Center Theater's "McNeal" will begin previews LCT’s Vivian Beaumont Theater on September 5 then will have a strictly limited run from September 30 to November 24.
A synopsis for the play reads: "Good writers borrow, great writers steal. Jacob McNeal is a great writer, one of our greatest, a perpetual candidate for the Nobel Prize in Literature. But McNeal also has an estranged son, a new novel, old axes to grind and an unhealthy fascination with Artificial Intelligence."
"Akhtar's new play is a startling and wickedly smart examination of the inescapable humanity – and increasing inhumanity – of the stories we tell."
Earlier this year, Downey received the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in "Oppenheimer," though he is best known for his role as Tony Stark in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
His other acting credits include "Chaplin," "Tropic Thunder," "U.S. Marshals," "Zodiac," "The Shaggy Dog," "Kiss Kiss Bang Bang," two "Sherlock Holmes" films, and most recently the miniseries "The Sympathizer" as four different characters.
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