Mickey Rourke is explaining the real reason behind his recent eviction after it was reported that he withheld nearly $60,000 in rent.
“The reason I stopped paying rent was because the living conditions in the house had become unacceptable,” Rourke, 73, told E! News in a statement on Wednesday, March 11. “For months there were serious problems that repeatedly went unaddressed despite my efforts to have them fixed.”
He alleged that there were “rodent issues” that were “never fully resolved.” Rourke also claimed that “basic maintenance was never properly handled” on the property despite his “repeated requests for repairs.”
“Withholding rent was not a decision I made lightly,” Rourke continued. “I simply could not continue paying for a house that was in such poor condition after so many attempts to have these issues corrected.”
Rourke was ordered to vacate his Los Angeles home earlier this week after failing to pay rent, according to a recent judgement obtained by multiple outlets.
People was first to report the news on Tuesday, March 10, revealing that Rourke’s rental agreement had been canceled and his lease was forfeited. The property has officially been returned to Rourke’s former landlord.
Court filings from December 2024 revealed that Rourke had been served with a notice apparently stating that he owed $59,100 in back rent. His choices were to pay the balance or vacate the property.
In January, a GoFundMe page was launched to allegedly assist the actor raise money for his back rent. However, Rourke denied setting it up in a statement shared via Instagram.
“Somebody set up some kind of foundation or fund for me to donate money, like charity,” he said in the January 5 video. “And that’s not me, OK? If I needed money, I wouldn’t ask for no f***ing charity. I’d rather stick a gun up my ass and pull the trigger.”
The fundraiser, which raised more than $102,000, has since been taken down.
“I wouldn’t know what a GoFund foundation is in a million years. My life is very simple. I don’t go to outside sources like that,” he continued. “Yeah, it is embarrassing, but I’m sure I’ll get over it like everything else.”
During the same social media video, Rourke addressed the allegations that he was behind on rent.
“Everything was good for five or six years, and then two scumbags from New York bought the house and they wouldn’t fix anything,” he alleged. “So I said, ‘I’m not paying rent,’ because there’s mice, there’s rats, the floor is rotten, one bathtub there’s no water, in two different sinks there was no water.”
Rourke added, “But I would never ask strangers or fans or anybody for a nickel. I mean, that’s not my style. It’s humiliating and it’s really f***ing embarrassing.”
