Everyone knows that The Wrestler is Mickey Rourke's most biographical film.

But did you realise that Rourke's career has been littered with flicks that could've been written specifically for him?

Here’s our walk through the wild side of Rourke and how the camera reflected more than his face…



Blazing To Attention

Body Heat (1981)

Despite making his screen debut in Steven Spielberg’s 1941, it was Lawrence Kasdan’s taught thriller that first saw Rourke truly come to attention.

He was working as a bouncer at a transvestite club in LA when he auditioned for the role of arsonist Teddy Lewis.

''I was looking for a young De Niro,'' remembers Kasdan. ''Every young actor says they want to be the heir to Brando or De Niro, but when Mickey read for the part, he genuinely had that quality.''

While Teddy is a small link in the film's plot, the man who played him effortlessly stole scenes from stars William Hurt and Kathleen Turner and soon caught the attention of the likes of Barry Levinson and Francis Ford Coppola… He was on the way.

But despite his burgeoning screen presence, he was still an outsider…

Next: Mysterious Upstart