Mickey Rourke sparks debate after calling Tom Cruise ‘irrelevant’ in bizarre rant

Mickey Rourke has made it clear that he doesn’t rate Tom Cruise as an actor. At all.

The 69-year-old hit out at the Top Gun star in a bizarre rant and called the star “irrelevant” during a TV interview.

He was asked how he felt about the success of Top Gun: Maverick in an interview on Piers Morgan Uncensored – and Rourke replied in no uncertain terms.

“That doesn’t mean sh** to me,” he said.

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“The guy’s been doing the same effing part for 35 years. I got no respect for that.”

Explaining his reasoning, Rourke went on to say: “I don’t care about money and power. I care about when I watch Al Pacino work and Chris Walken and De Niro’s early work and Richard Harris’s work and Ray Winstone’s work.

The actor didn't hold back in his criticism TalkTV/Paramount

“That’s the kind of actor I want to be like. Monty Clift and Brando back in the day.”

When asked if he thought Cruise was a good actor, he replied: “I think he’s irrelevant, in my world.”

Rourke's comments have sparked a debate with some agreeing and disagreeing with him.

Cruise is currently enjoying the biggest box office success of his career, with Top Gun: Maverick breaking the $1 billion mark worldwide.

Rourke, meanwhile, is best known for films such as The Wrestler, Anger Heart and 9½ Weeks.

It’s not the first time Rourke has taken a dig at high-profile acting performances. Back in 2021, he hit out at the stars of Marvel films – saying that the performances in Law & Order: SVU are far superior to the big-budget franchise.

Posting about the stars of the TV series, he wrote: “Respect to all of you, the work that you all do is real acting, not like that crap that all on Marvel s***.”

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