Mickey Rourke

Philip Andre "Mickey" Rourke Jr. (/rʊərk/ ROORK; born September 16, 1952)^[2] is an American actor and former professional boxer who has appeared primarily as a leading man in drama, action, and thriller films. In a film career spanning more than forty years, his accolades include a Golden Globe Award and a BAFTA, in addition to Screen Actors Guild and Academy Award nominations. Films in which he has appeared have grossed over $1.9 billion worldwide.^[3]

Rourke played small roles in Heaven's Gate (1980) and Body Heat (1981) before going on to win acclaim and a National Society of Film Critics Award for his role in Diner (1982). He subsequently established himself as a leading man in dramas such as Rumble Fish (1983), The Pope of Greenwich Village (1984), Year of the Dragon (1985), 9½ Weeks (1986), Angel Heart (1987), Barfly (1987), and Johnny Handsome (1989). In 1991, after some critical and commercial failures, Rourke—who trained as a boxer in his youth—left acting to pursue professional boxing.^[4] After retiring from boxing in 1994, Rourke returned to acting and had supporting roles in several films such as The Rainmaker (1997), Buffalo '66 (1998), Animal Factory (2000), The Pledge (2001), Once Upon a Time in Mexico (2003), Man on Fire (2004) and Domino (2005). In 2005, Rourke made a comeback in mainstream Hollywood circles with a lead role in the neo-noir action thriller Sin City.

His comeback culminated in his portraying aging wrestler Randy 'The Ram' Robinson in the sports drama film The Wrestler (2008). For the role, Rourke won the Golden Globe Award and BAFTA Award for Best Actor, and received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actor.^[5] After this, Rourke appeared in several commercially successful films; Iron Man 2 (2010), The Expendables (2010) and Immortals (2011), before primarily going on to work in direct-to-video productions and independent films.