Warning: This article contains discussion of discrimination against the LGBTQ+ community which some readers may find distressing.
It's been just three days since the brand new series of Celebrity Big Brother landed on screens, and already, Mickey Rourke has sparked outrage by firing a number of 'homophobic' comments at housemate JoJo Siwa.
He was subsequently issued a brutal warning by bosses of the popular British reality TV series, but one three-word remark he made beforehand might reveal a lot about his behaviour.
The 72-year-old - famed for his sporting career, and for later starring in a number blockbuster smash-hits, like Sin City and 9½ Weeks - began the week by being branded 'creepy' for his behaviour towards the show's host, AJ Odudu.
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Before even entering the house, Rourke was seen pulling the presenter towards him before telling her she had a 'nice outfit', and very blatantly looking her up and down.
In the days that followed, his conduct toward co-star Siwa has also sparked outrage.
Prior to doing so, however, Rourke was discussing his career struggles with his fellow ITV cast-mates.
Speaking to Love Island star Chris Hughes, he revealed: "Two years of Covid to then a seven-month actors’ strike, I had to borrow half a million dollars from the bank to get by and pay bills."
Rourke continued: "Everybody in those picket lines is an out of work actor, there would be the flavour of the month actor show up to just say 'how great am I, I’m in the picket line with all the poor people that will never get a job, aren’t I wonderful'."
During the conversation, he shocked viewers by claiming he was only hoping to 'last four days' in the show.
Minutes later, Rourke seemingly supported his own claim about leaving early by making a number of harmful anti-LGBTQ+ comments.
Speaking to 21-year-old Dance Moms alum Siwa - who identifies as a lesbian - minutes later, he asked her about her sexuality, telling her that 'if [he stays] longer than four days, you won’t be gay anymore'.
The fellow American acted quickly in shutting down his comments, claiming she could 'guarantee' that such a scenario wouldn't happen.
Later during the show, Rourke could then be heard telling housemate Hughes that he planned 'to vote the lesbian out real quick'.
The nasty remark was overheard by Siwa, who clapped back: "That’s homophobic, if that was your reasoning."
The conversation then went from shocking to downright offensive, when Rourke subsequently declared that he was going for a 'f*g', before pointing to JoJo and saying 'I’m not talking to you'.
Hughes then stepped in to call out Mickey for his comments, saying: "Mickey, you can’t say that."
Though he went on to claim he was using the British slang term to mean cigarette - as opposed to the extremely homophobic slur - he was later called into the house's 'diary room', where he was issued with a formal warning about his 'unacceptable language and behaviour'.
"I apologise," Rourke responded. "I don’t have dishonourable intentions - I’m just talking smack, you know.
"I wasn’t taking it all so serious. I didn’t mean in it any bad intentions and if I did, sorry."
Apologising to Siwa later on, he claimed: "I've got a habit of having a short fuse. And I don't mean nothing by it. I do mean it [sorry].
"If I didn't, I wouldn't say it to you."
Despite his apology, Rourke's ceaseless inappropriate comments have landed him in hot water with hundreds of viewers watching the show from home, including one who previously hit out: "JoJo Siwa being subjected to homophobic bigotry from Mickey Rourke was a hard watch."
Another penned online: "JoJo Siwa getting hate crimed not even 24 hours into her Big Brother experience just shows how rude homophobia still is, bless Chris for calling it out too, that's a REAL man."
Topics: Celebrity, Celebrity Big Brother, Big Brother, ITV, Reality TV
Rhianna Benson