Mickey Rourke is often considered modern Hollywood’s strangest figure since he is universally recognized not just for his talent but also for his unconventional career arc. Beginning his career by working with directors like Francis Ford Coppola and Steven Spielberg, Rourke soon witnessed a downfall in his career which became rather difficult to resuscitate.
However, eventually, Mickey Rourke found the perfect opportunity to get his career back on track with a highly anticipated comic book adaptation. Well, most people might think of it as Robert Downey Jr’s Iron Man 2, but apparently, it’s Frank Miller’s 2005 adaptation Sin City, that resuscitated Rourke’s career.
Mickey Rourke Witnessed a Bizarre Career Drop
Rising to fame through his appearances primarily in television films during the late 1970s, Mickey Rourke ventured into mainstream Hollywood with his small role debut in Steven Spielberg’s feature film 1941. Garnering significant attention from his role, the actor later made his way into Francis Ford Coppola’s The Outsiders.
Further, playing enigmatic roles alongside renowned stars like Vincent Spano, Nicolas Cage, Chris Penn, and more, Mickey Rourke became a roughish leading man. Apart from his acting profession, Rourke was also trained in boxing and had a short stint as a pro fighter in the 1990s.
However, despite his massive success, surprisingly the actor’s career started to wane in the 1990s and early 2000s. Witnessing a difficult time in his career after enjoying his definitive high point, Mickey Rourke watched his career take a bizarre drop. The actor quite obviously became frantic and looked for opportunities to resuscitate his career.
Mickey Rourke Resuscitated His Career With Sin City
Following the drop in his career, Mickey Rourke had been looking for an opportunity to rebuild himself. That’s when he found the highly anticipated comic book adaptation as his savior. While most people might think of this particular opportunity as Robert Downey Jr‘s Iron Man 2, it’s actually Frank Miller’s 2005 film Sin City.
Although Sin City is one of the strangest comic book film adaptations ever made, Mickey Rourke’s role in the adaptation resuscitated his career. According to The Independent, considering the 2005 movie as his lifeline, Rourke grasped it with two huge, monochromatic hands. Surprisingly, within two years, his career was flying high again.
Playing the role of Marv in Frank Miller’s heated neo-noir imagination, Mickey Rourke led the role of a malicious, unstoppable, and borderline inhuman force of violence. Following his gruesome, gore-filled movie that fans absolutely adored, they came up with its 2014 sequel, where Rourke yet again reprised his role, alongside Bruce Willis.
