( CNN ) Robert Downey Jr. is making headlines for walking out of an interview with a British journalist who dared to veer away from the superhero movie Downey was there to promote . The journalist instead started asking personal questions about the actor 's political beliefs and `` dark periods '' of addiction and jail time . Twitter , of course , is abuzz : Did journalist Krishnan Guru-Murthy go too far ? Must every interview be a license for a journalist to ask anything he 'd like ? From the start of the 7-minute television interview , it seems evident that Downey is not particularly interested in being there , even if being there was , ultimately , a benefit to him -- after all , he 's promoting his latest film , `` Avengers : Age of Ultron . '' He grows increasingly agitated , even as the line of questioning remains on-topic ; his attitude , meanwhile , grew increasingly smug . His eyes glaze over as the reporter talks , he makes condescending comments and gestures that seem intended to intimidate and imply he 's much smarter than Guru-Murthy , and he repeatedly looks toward his handler as if to say , `` Do I really have to sit here with this guy ? '' At one point , he makes fun of Guru-Murthy for seeming nervous , saying , `` Your foot is starting to jump a little bit . You better get to your next question . '' But it 's after Guru-Murthy asks Downey whether he thinks he is `` free from all of that , '' referring to Downey 's history of `` taking drugs , drinking '' that the building tension comes to a head . `` I 'm sorry , '' says Downey , `` What are we doing ? '' To which Guru-Murthy replies , `` I 'm just asking questions , '' which indeed was so . Downey has the right to refuse to answer the question , of course , but that 's not what he does next . Instead , he throws the celebrity interview equivalent of a tantrum : He smiles arrogantly , says `` bye ! '' and stands up to leave . He sure showed him ! It 's true that we live in a culture where we feel we have the right to know everything about celebrities -- who they 're dating , what they 're eating , where they vacation , what they meant when they made that comment 10 years ago . Journalists often go too far , even if it 's their job . And certainly not every journalist is good at his job . But while Downey may be understandably tired of answering questions about his past , questions that have been asked before , his business is our business . The entertainment industry is about entertaining people . As such , we tend to like to watch actors who seem like they want to be watched . This is why most celebrities , especially those with a big budget movie to promote , agree to interviews and seek out recognition in general . But when the recognition no longer serves them ? Then they want to bemoan it ? What Downey seemed to misunderstand is that the interview format gives journalists the right to ask questions . That 's what an interview is . He certainly can decline to answer questions he does not feel are appropriate , or even ones he simply does n't feel like answering . But he does not have the right to be absolved for behavior that is rude , demeaning , and disrespectful -- even if he 's a celebrity , and even if he felt uncomfortable or put-off . What the video shows is a movie star with a bullying streak . After he removes his microphone and his handlers begin hustling him out with kid gloves , the actor can not resist a parting shot . He turns to the reporter , being sure to look directly at the camera on the way , and says , `` You seem okay . It 's just getting a little Diane Sawyer in here , '' followed by what sounds like , `` and you 're kind of a schmuck . '' Downey might not have been `` in the mood '' to be questioned ... and those days , those moods , are understandable . We all have them . And yet in this case , that 's , well , too bad . The actor has agreed to an interview as part of his job . He has agreed to engage in a conversation with another professional human being . Given the terms , he is not entitled to call all the shots . That he thinks he can is perhaps our own , celebrity-obsessed doing -- we revere the famous ; is it any surprise when they reveal that they , too , regard themselves as better than everyone else ? But it 's still on him .
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