Philip Andre Rourke Jr. (/rʊərk/; born September 16, 1952) known professionally as Mickey Rourke, is an American actor, screenwriter, and retired boxer, who has appeared primarily as a leading man in action, drama, and thriller films.

During the 1980s Rourke starred in Diner, Rumble Fish, and the erotic drama 9½ Weeks, and received critical praise for his work in Barfly and Angel Heart. In 1991 Rourke, who had trained as a boxer in his early years, left acting and became a professional boxer for a time. He had supporting roles in several later films, including The Rainmaker, Buffalo '66, The Pledge, Get Carter, Spun, Once Upon a Time in Mexico and Man on Fire.

In 2005 Rourke made his comeback in mainstream Hollywood circles with a lead role in Sin City, for which he won awards from the Chicago Film Critics Association, the Irish Film and Television Awards, and the Online Film Critics Society. In the 2008 film The Wrestler, Rourke portrayed a past-his-prime wrestler, and received a 2009 Golden Globe award, a BAFTA award, and a nomination for an Academy Award. In 2010 he appeared in Iron Man 2 and The Expendables.

During his teenage years, Rourke focused his attention mainly on sports. He took up self-defense training at the Boys Club of Miami. It was there that he learned boxing skills and decided on an amateur career.

At age 12, Rourke won his first boxing match as a 112-pound flyweight, fighting some of his early matches under the name Phil Rourke. He continued his boxing training at the famed 5th Street Gym, in Miami Beach, Florida. In 1969 Rourke, then weighing 140 pounds (63.5 kg), sparred with former World Welterweight Champion Luis Rodríguez. Rodriguez was the number one–rated middleweight boxer in the world and was training for his match with world champion Nino Benvenuti. Rourke claims to have received a concussion from his sparring match with Rodriguez.

At the 1971 FloridaGolden Gloves, Rourke suffered another concussion in a boxing match. After being told by doctors to take a year off and rest, Rourke temporarily retired from the ring.

From 1964 to 1973, Rourke compiled an amateur boxing record of 27 wins (17 by knockout) and 3 defeats, which included first-round knockout wins over Sherman Bergman, John Carver, and Ronald Robinson, and decision victories over Ron Carter, Charles Gathers, Joe Riles, and Javier Villanueva.