Robert Downey Jr. references his druggie past in acceptance speech

Robert Downey Jr. may have kept his sunglasses on for the duration of his acceptance speech at the MTV Movie Awards, but what came out of his mouth kept things real.

For starters, he told the audience to "keep your nose clean" -- a reference to his past struggles with drug addiction. The actor, who received the Generation Award at Sunday's show, has come a long way, and offered up plenty of advice in his inspirational speech. "I've grown up, I've struggled, I've failed, I've succeeded, I've partied way too much ... (I) literally clawed my way to the top," he said. "Dream big, work hard, keep your nose clean, be of service, and yes, because you can, define your generation."

Oh, and his fellow Avengers cast members Mark Ruffalo, Scarlett Johansson, Chris Hemsworth, Jeremy Renner and Chris Evans literally bowed down when RDJ took to the stage:

Watch his full speech here:

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