Mickey Rourke Says He 'Wasn't That Big A Fan' Of The Wrestler

While he was nominated for an Academy Award for his performance as Randy 'The Ram' Robinson, Mickey Rourke isn't a fan of The Wrestler.

Rourke, who is currently a contestant in Celebrity Big Brother UK, admitted during a chat on his second day in the Big Brother house that he "wasn't that big a fan" of The Wrestler after he received praise for his performance from a fellow housemate.

Rourke noted he struggled with the physical demands of his role as Randy The Ram.

"We also had such a low budget, so I was working 15-16-hour days with 6 hours sleep, with all the physicality. And I put on like 40 or 50 pounds, so my body was uncomfortable at that weight," Rourke said.

"The last day of working on The Wrestler, I was sitting in my living room in New York and I was on the couch, shaking, and crying, and hyperventilating, and exhausted. And they're going, 'Hey, where are you? We're at the wrap party.' And I had called my priest, my doctor, my psychiatrist, because I felt like I was dying."

The Wrestler was critically acclaimed upon its release in 2008 as it chronicled a pro wrestler performing on the indies trying to cling to the success of his heyday in the 1980s. Many of the matches in the movie were taped at Ring of Honor shows and The Wrestler featured real wrestlers, including R-Truth, Claudio Castagnoli, and Necro Butcher.

Mickey Rourke's time on Celebrity Big Brother has proven to be controversial so far, and he was given a formal warning by the show's producers for "offensive and unacceptable" language towards another housemate, JoJo Siwa.

This came after Rourke said Siwa, who is a lesbian, would no longer be homosexual after spending four days in the Big Brother house with him. Rourke was also accused by Siwa of being homophobic for saying he was "going to vote the lesbian out real quick."

The 72-year-old also said on day two of the show that he needed a cigarette by saying "I need a fag" before he gestured to Siwa and added, "I'm not talking to you." Rourke later apologised to Siwa for his comments, claiming he was "just talking smack" and didn't have any bad intentions.

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