Mickey Rourke rejects $100,000 pledged by fans as manager explains eviction backstory

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Mickey Rourke doesn’t want your money.

The 73-year-old actor and former boxer said he’d rather endure something extremely unpleasant – he described a violent act, but didn’t want to share specifics, comparing it to something from a Mickey Rourke film – than accept help from others while being evicted. He emphasized, “That’s just not who I am.” He shared this in a video posted to Instagram Monday night.

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I was really bummed to hear Mickey Rourke was facing eviction – almost $60,000 in back rent is a tough spot to be in for anyone. Thankfully, his management team stepped up and started a GoFundMe, and people really came through! They actually raised enough to cover the rent and then some, which is just a great reminder of how supportive movie fans can be. It’s good to see a legend like him getting a little help.

While cuddling his Chihuahua, Lucky, actor Rourke said he was unaware of who started a GoFundMe campaign for him. His management team launched the campaign on Sunday to help him avoid eviction due to around $60,000 in back rent. By Tuesday morning, it had surpassed its $100,000 goal, with over 2,700 donors sharing how much Rourke’s movies meant to them.

Look, I’ll be honest, I had no idea what a GoFundMe even was,” veteran actor Mickey Rourke recently told me. He’s a guy who really made a name for himself in the eighties with films like “Barfly” and “Angel Heart,” and then got an Oscar nod for his powerful performance in “The Wrestler.” He admitted it’s a little embarrassing to be in a situation where he needed to ask for help that way, but he seems confident he’ll shake it off – which, honestly, sounds like classic Rourke. He keeps things simple and prefers to handle things himself, apparently.

He explained that he would never ask his fans or strangers for money, calling it humiliating and embarrassing. He later mentioned people had offered him up to $100,000, but he wouldn’t accept even a single penny from anyone.

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Rourke explained this isn’t a sudden complaint, but rather a result of a difficult housing situation. He’d been renting a house in Beverly Grove for years when it was sold to new owners. They significantly increased the rent – from $5,200 to $7,000 a month – and refused to make necessary repairs.

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Kevin Spacey stated he had to sell his Baltimore home due to financial difficulties stemming from the sexual harassment and assault allegations made against him starting in 2017.

Rourke reported that the floors were decaying, some sinks didn’t have running water, and the building was overrun with rodents.

Eric Goldie’s attorney, Ricardo Villalobos, didn’t respond to a request for comment from The Times regarding claims made by Rourke. Court documents reviewed by The Times show the eviction notice was filed on December 29th, stating $59,100 in rent was unpaid for the year 2025.

I was reading an article in the Hollywood Reporter about the GoFundMe campaign for Mickey Rourke, and his manager of nine years, Kimberly Hines, gave them a call from Europe to set the record straight. Apparently, there’s been some talk that Mickey didn’t know who started it, but she said that’s just not true. She’d spoken to him a couple of times on Sunday, and he does know about the fundraising effort.

Hines emphasized that he doesn’t want Mickey to rely on asking the public for money. He wants to see Mickey working again. Fortunately, the recent publicity has led to several new opportunities – Mickey has already received four movie offers in the last day, which is a welcome change after a long period of not receiving any offers at all.

Hollywood Inc.

Mickey Rourke, an Academy Award nominee, is facing eviction from his Los Angeles home because he owes almost $60,000 in back rent. The home is a three-bedroom property.

According to her, she and her assistant shared the idea with Rourke’s assistant, and everyone agreed the fundraiser could be useful. They then organized movers and a U-Haul to help Rourke and his three dogs move from a severely rundown house – which she described as “uninhabitable” – to a nearby hotel, and they found him an apartment in Koreatown to move into before his landlords changed the locks on Tuesday.

Hines explained to The Hollywood Reporter that the house had black mold and no running water. This made it impossible to move furniture out, as it was all damaged by water. A video documented the extent of the damage, but a few people were able to salvage and move his most valuable possessions to a new apartment.

Despite the recent difficulties, Hines has stated she intends to continue managing Rourke. She didn’t reply to a request for comment from The Times on Monday.

She assured industry colleagues that no one on their team had done anything wrong, explaining that the situation arose from good intentions. She also stated she was personally covering the costs to help Mickey through a difficult emergency.

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Following a comment from Mickey Rourke questioning JoJo Siwa’s sexuality, Bella Thorne publicly accused him of being unpleasant and inappropriate during the filming of their movie, “Girl.”

Hines advised Rourke to accept the donation, explaining that she couldn’t support him indefinitely. She added that Rourke has historically struggled with financial management.

According to one source, Mickey Rourke struggles with balance and tends to go to extremes – either spending lavishly or having very little. He reportedly lives paycheck to paycheck. His accountant is now working to stabilize his finances and help him understand the need to live on a budget, relying on Social Security and any income he earns from acting.

In his video, Rourke admitted the business end of his business has never been his strong suit.

I really mismanaged my career and wasn’t always easy to work with. It took over 20 years of therapy to deal with the fallout from my earlier behavior, and I worked hard to overcome it. I’ve changed a lot since then. If you want to know, talk to people I’ve worked with recently – Robert Rodriguez, Francis Coppola, Darren Aronofsky. I’m not the same reckless person I was in my twenties, but you always have to face the consequences of your past actions.

Darren Aronofsky, the director of ‘Caught Stealing,’ mentioned that many of Bad Bunny’s fans came to watch him film scenes for the new movie.

However, he strongly felt the fundraising campaign was a failure and believed donors deserved refunds.

He acknowledged it was a difficult time, but remained optimistic, saying, “Just like every storm, this too will end, and I’ll be able to return to work and things will eventually return to normal.”

Until then, Rourke said, don’t worry about him.

Look, I’m a simple guy. I’m thankful for the basics – a home and enough to eat. Honestly, things are alright. But if you’ve given me any money, please just get it back. I wouldn’t take it, and this whole situation just isn’t me. I’ve got my pride, you know? This isn’t how I operate.

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2026-01-06 22:02