Mickey Rourke has “agreed to leave” the U.K.’s Celebrity Big Brother following an incident with a house mate that was separate from his “homophobic” remarks to JoJo Siwa.
On Saturday, a spokesperson for the ITV, which airs the show, said in a statement, “Mickey Rourke has agreed to leave the Celebrity Big Brother House this evening following a discussion with Big Brother regarding further use of inappropriate language and instances of unacceptable behavior.”
According to the Independent, Rourke had an encounter with a fellow house mate — Love Island’s Chris Hughes — that “was considered to be threatening and aggressive.” However, “no physical altercation took place”; the confrontation between Rourke and Hughes has not yet aired on the show.
That incident was the latest in a series of Rourke-related issues in the Celebrity Big Brother house, with the actor also accused of ogling the show’s co-host AJ Odudu and offending another house mate (actress Donna Preston) with comments about her weight.
However, Rourke’s exploits in the U.K. reached an international audience with his remarks aimed at Siwa, who is openly gay. Rourke’s interactions with Siwa were laced with “offensive and unacceptable” language, and producers ultimately stepped in with a warning that “further language or behavior of this nature could lead to you being removed from the Big Brother house.”
In one interaction, Rourke asked Siwa if she was interested in boys or girls, to which Siwa responded, “Girls. My partner is non-binary.” Rourke then told Siwa, “If I stay longer than four days, you won’t be gay anymore,” to which she replied, “I can guarantee I’ll still be gay and I’ll still be in a very happy relationship.”
On another occasion, Rourke said en route to the Big Brother smoking section that “I need a fag” — British slang for a cigarette — but then pointed to Siwa and said, “I’m not talking to you.” Rourke also openly strategized on the reality competition that he was “going to vote the lesbian out real quick.”
Following the producers’ warning, Rourke was apologetic. “I apologize. I don’t have dishonorable intentions. I’m just talking smack, you know. I wasn’t taking it all so serious. I didn’t mean any bad intentions and if I did, sorry,” he told producers. The actor also apologized to Siwa, saying, “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.” Siwa replied, “I appreciate your apology.”
However, Rourke’s smack-talking continued to bristle his other house mates, leading to his departure from the Celebrity Big Brother house Saturday.
From Rolling Stone US
