Mickey Rourke breaks down in tears recalling meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin on 'Piers Morgan Uncensored'
Fox Nation subscribers can stream the new episode of 'Piers Morgan Uncensored' on the platform today.
In a new episode of "Piers Morgan Uncensored," Oscar-winning actor Mickey Rourke broke down in tears while recalling a personal interaction he had with Russian President Vladimir Putin as he struggled to contend with the realization that the man he once thought to be "empathetic" bears sole responsibly for the murderous atrocities committed in Ukraine.
The actor and former boxer sat down with Morgan to discuss everything from "gold digger" Amber Heard and childhood abuse to former President Donald Trump and Russia's ongoing invasion of Ukraine in the wide-ranging interview streaming now on Fox Nation.
At one point, Rourke recalled meeting Putin during a 2014 visit to Russia alongside other U.S. entertainers, where the Russian strongman sang and danced with actress Sharon Stone, Rourke said. However, the actor saw a different side of Putin when he joined him on a trip to St. Petersburg to visit a home for children suffering from incurable cancer.
"I looked over at Vladimir, and I could see somebody that was genuinely concerned about where we were and someone who was empathetic, and he was there for a sincere reason," Rourke told Morgan.
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The idea that the same man is single-handedly responsible for the tragedies and lives lost in Ukraine "blows my mind," Rourke said, adding that he wished a "little bell would ring in [Putin’s] head or his heart and he’d wake up and just stop all this sh--."
LOS ANGELES, CA - FEBRUARY 16: Actor Mickey Rourke arrives at the premiere of Open Road's "Triple 9" at Regal Cinemas L.A. Live on February 16, 2016 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Gregg DeGuire/WireImage)
"I don’t understand what he wants, and it’s not only combatants that are getting killed, but old people are getting killed, young people are getting killed. Schools are getting targeted, hospitals are getting targeted. All that sh--'s not right," he said.
Rourke became tearful as he recalled seeing a particularly haunting photo of an older man who had lost five family members in the war and was left with only his pet cat.
"The image that bothered me the most," he said. "I saw this old man old and a little gray kitten and the old man survived his house being bombed," Rourke said. "He lost five family members and the only thing he had, it’s kind of hard for me to talk about it, the only thing he had was this little gray kitty. I looked at that image … and I said how can I have anything to worry about? Losing a movie? Or I’m having a bad day?"
Addressing Putin directly, Rourke again fought back tears as he pleaded with him to end the Ukraine war.
Russian President Vladimir Putin chairs a meeting on the country's transport industry via a video link in Sochi, Russia May 24, 2022. (Sputnik/Mikhail Metzel/Kremlin via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY.)
,"You're not going to live forever. Look at Peter the Great, Napoleon, what happened to them trying to get more and more," he said. "You've got your power and your money. Just live your life and let these people in Ukraine be independent in the Democratic society they want to live in and just stop today. Not tomorrow. just stop right now."
For more from the Rourke interview, including details of his experience working with convicted sex abuser Roman Polanski, thoughts on Tom Cruise, and why he was recently paid a visit by the U.S. Secret Service, join Fox Nation and watch the new episode of "Piers Morgan Uncensored" today.
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