Darren Aronofsky, director of the critically acclaimed “The Wrestler” is quoted as saying that Mickey Rourke was not his first choice for the starring role. In fact, Sylvester Stallone was one of his first choices. Aronofsky said, “I was thinking it’d be interesting to see him go back to the ring in some way because he’s so good in the ring. Then he did ‘Rocky Balboa,’ the latest ‘Rocky,’ and it kinda ruled it out for me because it was about an older guy going back to the ring. There were enough connections there that I didn’t want to go near it.” You can read the full article here.
While it would have been very cool to see Sly in “The Wrestler,” I think that the path he is on now is better. Sly is back to writing, directing and starring in his own projects. Plus, it allowed Mickey Rourke another opportunity to shine. This way fans get to see two actors doing what they do best! – Craig