Iron Man communism. Subsequent re-imaginings of Iron Man have transitioned from Cold War motifs to contemporary matters of the time. Throughout most of the character's publication history, Iron Man has been a founding member of the superhero team the Avengers and has been featured in several incarnations of his own various comic book series. Iron Man has been adapted for several animated TV shows and films. The character is portrayed by Robert Downey Jr. in the live action film "Iron Man" (2008), which was a critical and box office success. Downey, who received much acclaim for his performance, reprised the role in
Robert Downey Jr. the Brat Pack. In 1987, Downey played Julian Wells, a drug-addicted rich boy whose life rapidly spirals out of his control, in the film version of the Bret Easton Ellis novel "Less Than Zero". His performance, described by Janet Maslin in "The New York Times" as "desperately moving", was widely praised, though Downey has said that for him "the role was like the ghost of Christmas Future" since his drug habit resulted in his becoming an "exaggeration of the character" in real life. "Zero" drove Downey into films with bigger budgets and names, such as "Chances Are" (1989) with Cybill