Why Didn’t Mickey Rourke Get The Oscar?

Mickey Rourke at the Independent Spirit Awards

Another year, another Oscar ceremony. Most of the awards went according to plan. Slumdog Millionaire swept the board and Kate Winslet finally got the Academy’s recognition she deserves. The nights biggest shock, which frankly disappointed me, was that the crazy and unpredictable Mickey Rourke didn’t add to his Golden Globes, BAFTA and Spirit triumphs as expected. But I for one was hoping that Mickey would get to spice up the night with another nutty acceptance speech.

In the end the Academy Award was given to Sean Penn for his outstanding role as gay civil rights leader Harvey Milk. Look - I am not saying that Sean Penn wasn’t worthy of the accolade. Quite the opposite - the role was a brilliant and important one. But am I the only one that just loves the crazyness that Mickey brings to the often staged and insincere PR stunt that is the Oscars?

While the female stars on the red carpet can turn up in all kinds of jaw dropping outfits, with men it’s usually the same old black tuxedo for everyone.But Mickey Rourke went against the grain by showing up in a shabby chic white tux with his shirt open. Of course he also wore his trademark designer sunglasses which have become part of his image in the awards season. The silliest part was the amount of times he mentioned his dead pooch Loki, who passed away recently and whose image Rourke displayed on his necklace in tribute!

It was all gearing up to another unpredictable and slighlty mad acceptance speech if he’d have won.  Who knows what he would have come out with on the stage, chihuahua memorial necklace, glasses and all? Anyone remember his classic (crazy) speech at the Golden Globes this year. And more recently he brought the house down at the independent Spirit awards the night before the Oscars - see the video above.

I suspect there was more than a little politics involved in denying Rourke the Oscar. Mickey himself had predicted he woudldn’t win because he’s pissed off too many hollywood hotshots in the past. “I stupidly said acting wasn’t a job for a real man. I threatened producers, raged at directors, forgot my agent’s name. I really burned my bridges. And a lot of people have long memories,” was the eerily accurate prediction from Mickey Rourke before the awards.

Sean Penn does deserve bonus points - he’s never a dull guy and his acceptance speech was interesting to say the least. To begin with his thank-you’s were directed at the Academy, whom he referred to as “commie, homo-loving sons of guns”! Penn then pulled out a small scribbled bit of paper, donned his prescription glasses, and after a few thank-yous proceeded with an impassioned plea for equal rights for gays and against the ban on gay marriages. Not quite as entertaining as Mad Mickey would have been - but better than gushing and thanking his mother for bringing him into this wonderful world.

Roll on the Rourke comeback wagon in the meantime!