Mickey Rourke bio, age, family, wife, children, surgery, young photos 2025

Mickey Rourke Biography

Mickey Rourke became Hollywood's breakout sex symbol after his smoldering performance as John in Adrian Lyne's erotic drama "9 1/2 Weeks" (1985). Before acting, he was a professional boxer. He has written several screenplays. He was nominated for an Oscar for his role as Randy Robinson in Darren Aronofsky's movie "The Wrestler". He is a recipient of the BAFTA and the Golden Globe awards. He's also notorious for his extensive plastic surgery, much of which went wrong.

Childhood

Philip Andre Rourke Jr. was born in fall 1952 to Catholic parents Philip Andre and Ann Rourke in New York state. In later interviews, Philip Andre Jr. joked that his mother called him Mickey to avoid confusion with his father. Another story claims the nickname came from his bodybuilder father, a huge baseball and Mickey Mantle fan. Before the boy turned six, two more children were born in the family - Joseph and Patricia.

His parents' constant fighting led to divorce. Ann took the kids and moved to Liberty City, a predominantly African American suburb of Miami. Seven-year-old Mickey started school there, and his mother remarried a policeman named Gene Addis, who already had five kids from previous marriages. Harsh and uncompromising, he despised his stepsons and believed they needed strict discipline enforced with his fists. Mickey, the eldest and most free-spirited, bore the brunt of it.

Mickey Rourke and his younger brother Joseph

But Mickey didn't resent his stepfather for the random beatings - he hated him for beating his mother, who lived in terror of this massive, cruel man. For years, Rourke fantasized about getting revenge on Addis for his childhood trauma. Next door was a community center where kids from low-income families could stay busy. It was there that Mickey first saw a punching bag.

For a teenager struggling in school, boxing represented his ticket to adulthood. He trained hard and soon stepped into the ring at Fifth Street Miami Beach Boxing Hall, fighting under the nickname "Mickey Mouse." Meanwhile, Mickey spent most of his time hanging out with various characters, preferring Liberty City's streets to his own home. To make money, he sold candy and dealt drugs until witnessing a shootout that shook him so badly, Mickey decided to leave town and pursue acting.

Youth

Before leaving for New York with his sister's money, the young man managed to knock out two of his stepfather's teeth and even starred in the school drama club's production of "Wuthering Heights," directed by his friend, earning his high school diploma in 1971.

He set off to conquer the acting world, initially settling in a cheap Greenwich Village hotel in Manhattan. Scraping by with odd jobs, Rourke was saving up for acting school. He took whatever work he could find – bouncer, pool cleaner, street vendor.

Mickey Rourke's first role – the short film 'Love in the Hamptons'

When he auditioned at the legendary Lee Strasberg Acting Studio, founder and examiner Elia Kazan was blown away by Rourke's scene from Tennessee Williams' "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof." Mickey beat out thousands of applicants to become one of just five students accepted that year. Even Jack Nicholson, who got into Strasberg's studio on his fifth attempt, and Dustin Hoffman, who passed the audition only on the eighth try, couldn't claim such an instant success.

While the former boxer breezed through his studies, real life hit him hard afterward. Hollywood wasn't rushing to fulfill Mickey's dreams – he went from audition to audition but couldn't land even the smallest parts. LA was packed with young hopefuls who, like Rourke, were chasing stardom. Landing a spot as an extra in Steven Spielberg's cult comedy "1941" felt like a sign his luck was changing.

Young Mickey Rourke on the set of the film '1941' (left in the top row)

Film Career: Rise, Fall, Comeback

Following his work with Spielberg, Mickey Rourke secured a major role in Michael Cimino's epic western "Heaven's Gate."

Mickey Rourke in the movie 'Rumble Fish'

Throughout the early eighties, he scored several supporting and starring roles that built his reputation, though fame remained elusive. His role in Francis Ford Coppola's "Rumble Fish" particularly impressed the legendary director, who praised Rourke's talent and personality as "magnetic" and "mysterious."

Rumble Fish. Clip

His breakthrough arrived with "9 ½ Weeks," where he starred opposite Kim Basinger, catapulting him to Hollywood stardom and sex symbol status. The steamy melodrama, pushing the boundaries of explicit eroticism, found greater success in Europe than America, where it earned three Golden Raspberry nominations.

He then took on the role of private detective Harry Angel in Alan Parker's supernatural thriller "Angel Heart." His character investigates a missing musician case, only to discover that everyone he questions ends up dead.

Capitalizing on his momentum, Rourke penned the script for Michael Seresin's boxing drama "Homeboy." He starred as Johnny Walker, an unlucky loner trying to make it in the boxing world. His performance felt raw and authentic—he understood exactly what drove his character into each fight.

The audience did not like the movie 'Homeboy'

The film didn't match the success of his later projects like "Wild Orchid" and "Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man." Still, Rourke had reached star status and could be selective about his projects. In 1994, he stepped away from acting to return to professional boxing.

ET Flashback 84: Mickey Rourke

By the mid-nineties, Rourke had circled back to screenwriting. Collaborating with Bruce Rubenstein, he crafted the story of ex-convict Butch "Bullet" Stein. The dramatic action film "Bullet," with Rourke in the lead role, was released in 1996. Following that, Rourke entered a career slump, stuck with uninspiring roles in B-grade thrillers.

Kim Basinger meets Mickey Rourke - Nine and a Half Weeks

Hoping to reclaim his former glory, Rourke—whose face bore the brutal marks of boxing—turned to plastic surgery. The result was quite the opposite, but more on that later.

The new chapter of Rourke's film career began in the 21st century. He first appeared in minor roles in films directed by Sean Penn ("The Pledge"), Tony Scott ("Domino"), and Robert Rodriguez ("Once Upon a Time in Mexico").

Mickey Rourke and Johnny Depp have been friends since the 90s

He unleashed his dramatic power in "Sin City" (2005), directed by Frank Miller and Robert Rodriguez. On set, Rourke worked with Bruce Willis, Clive Owen, and Benicio Del Toro. Rourke, who bore little resemblance to the heartthrob from "9 ½ Weeks," played the brutish Marv, a "dumb brute" hiding a sharp mind. Coming after multiple surgeries, his deliberately ugly character became the ultimate act of self-aware irony.

His largely autobiographical role as Randy Robinson in "The Wrestler" marked his triumphant return to stardom. Rourke threw everything he had into the performance, emotionally and physically. His raw portrayal of Randy, a washed-up wrestler clinging to past glory, earned him an Oscar nomination, Golden Globe and BAFTA wins, plus the Golden Lion at Venice.

Mickey Rourke in the movie 'The Wrestler'

Rourke's success wasn't fleeting. After that, he appeared in high-profile films like "Iron Man 2," "The Expendables," "Passion Play," and played King Hyperion in Tarsem Singh's action-fantasy "Immortals." Since then, up until 2019, he has appeared in over a dozen films.

Boxing and Plastic Surgery

Rourke's acting career might have gone down a completely different path if not for his stubborn streak, drug problems, and love affair with boxing. At nearly forty and riding high on his acting success, Mickey made his comeback to professional boxing.

Over four years, he went undefeated in eight light heavyweight fights (including two draws). Rourke said he was battling his own demons this way—he'd lost all respect for himself as an actor.

In 2009, Moscow hosted what would be the famous actor's final fight—a knockout victory over Elliot Seymour.

In a few years of boxing practice, Rourke broke his cheek, 2 ribs, a finger, 4 joints on his hand, and his nose. He started having memory lapses

Multiple serious concussions left him with coordination problems. Mickey had to kiss his world championship dreams goodbye—doctors banned him from the ring unless he wanted permanent brain damage. On top of that, his injuries led to multiple botched plastic surgeries that left his face permanently altered.

Mickey Rourke Before and After Plastic Surgery

In 2014, the actor began training again, showing off his muscular body.

Mickey Rourke Returned to the Ring in 2014

The actor remains in high demand across American and European cinema. He played Jim in the German melodrama "Berlin, I Love You" and took on the role of Harry in Aziz Tazi's crime drama "Night Walk." Rourke landed leading roles in Chad Faust's "Girl" and Asif Akbar's thriller "MR-9."

In 2020, films featuring Mickey Rourke were released: "Girl", where he starred alongside Bella Thorne, "Legionnaire's Trail", and "Adverse".

Beyond his busy filming schedule, Mickey loves hitting social events, turning heads with his unique fashion sense and always accompanied by his four-legged companion. Case in point: during New York Fashion Week, the actor showed up in a leather coat, fur boots, and cowboy hat, cradling an adorable puppy.

Rourke made just as big a splash on "Good Morning, Britain." He showed up fresh from yet another plastic surgery that transformed his face beyond recognition. The internet instantly exploded with brutal commentary about his dramatically altered looks.

Mickey Rourke on How His Psychiatrist Told Him to Take 'The Wrestler' Role

Mickey Rourke's Personal Life

Around the time the TV movie "Hardcase" (1981) hit screens, Mickey Rourke married actress Debra Feuer, his co-star from the film.

After eight years of marriage, the couple divorced without having any children. Years later, Debra remembered Mickey being incredibly shy when they first met, and she quickly discovered just how sensitive he really was. His over-the-top protectiveness soon morphed into jealousy, and as fame grew, Rourke turned to drugs – something Feuer couldn't handle anymore.

Right around his divorce, the actor spotted model Carré Otis at a casting call for Emily in Zalman King's steamy drama "Wild Orchid." Mickey fell head-over-heels for her and told the director he'd only do the movie if she got the part.

Their romance was intense from the start, and by wrap, they were married – though Otis had already gotten a taste of Rourke's explosive jealousy. The marriage was a toxic mix of constant fighting, drugs, alcohol, domestic violence, and intense passion – and it didn't last long.

Carré left multiple times, with Mickey literally getting on his knees to beg her back – he even cut off his own finger once. Doctors reattached the pinky, but his wife was done for good. Rourke later recalled:

I don't like talking about it because I still love her, but when my wife was leaving, she said I needed help, and I just shut her out mentally... She was right, I needed to change, but I didn't want to, until one day I looked in the mirror and saw myself the way others saw me. The guy staring back was completely armored up, and that's when I got scared...

The actor was ready to end it all when he decided to find a priest and spill everything. That priest literally saved his life. Mickey then forced himself into therapy and barely missed a session over ten years – just two total.

Mickey Rourke Documentary / The Story So Far (2019)

In the three years after Otis walked away, the actor sold off his car and motorcycle collection, then his Beverly Hills mansion. He filled the emptiness with boxing and his dogs, living in a makeshift truck setup for just $200 a week.

Mickey Rourke's love life post-divorce has been the subject of endless speculation. He's been linked to models Sasha Volkova and Eugenia Volodina.

In 2009, rumors swirled about the Hollywood star secretly marrying Russian model Elena Kuletskaya after a ten-month romance that included a proposal. But no wedding happened, and Rourke was quickly spotted with another stunning model – Anastasia Makarenko. To this day, no model except Otis has gotten Mickey back down the aisle.

In November 2019, Estonian model Carmen Pedaru showed up on Rourke's Instagram with the caption "Best wishes, 'beauty'" – sparking fresh rumors about his latest romantic interest.

Mickey Rourke Now

2021 saw the premiere of "Man of God," starring Mickey Rourke alongside Russian actor Alexander Petrov. The Greek production was directed by Serbian-American filmmaker Yelena Popovich. The film follows the life of Saint Nektarios of Aegina, the wrongly maligned bishop brought to life by Rourke.

Mickey Rourke in Greece on the set of the movie 'Man of God'

Photos: Mickey Rourke