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Mickey Rourke Will Murder in Cold Blood as The Ice Man

by Ethan Anderton
September 23, 2009
Source: NY Post

Mickey Rourke had quite the comeback last year with his Academy Award nominated performance in The Wrestler, and the momentum carried him right into the villainous role of Whiplash in next summer's Iron Man 2. Well the hits keep on coming as the NY Post reports that Rourke has been cast as the titular mafia assassin in The Ice Man. Story is based on Phil Carlo's book of the same name which chronicles the life of Richard Kuklinski, a mafia hit man who murdered more than 200 people. But apparently the role almost didn't go to Rourke, and was a bit of contention between Carlo and producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura.

Apparently di Bonaventura was looking to put G.I. Joe's Channing Tatum into the lead, but as Carlo succinctly countered, "I think Mickey Rourke would really be good. He's got that sense of danger... But it's not Channing Tatum." I have the exact same sentiment regarding Tatum for every role he's ever been considered for unless of course it's a JC Penney mannequin. But when di Bonaventura's option on Carlo's novel expired in August, he went straight to Rourke and Carlo couldn't be happier now that he's on-board:

"We hit it off beautifully. He's really looking forward to being the Ice Man, and I think he'll do a great job. He's talking about it being his Raging Bull."

I would've thought that The Wrestler would've been a more Raging Bull-esque role for Rourke, but who am I to steal his thunder? This role sounds like a really dark one for Rourke though. The Post article elaborates on some of the brutal murders committed by Kuklinski including killing 50 vagrants before he was 18 years old. Then he killed 150 more for the Gambino family, shooting, stabbing, choking, and even poisoning his victims. Carlo comments on another choice weapon which gives us a sense of just how cold-blooded The Ice Man was: "He used to use cobblestones, but he was getting gray matter on his clothes, so he stopped."

Wow. I used to have the same problem. Thoughts?

Filed under Casting, Movie News

From around the web:

Derek

I'M PUMPED!!!! Mickey Rourke is the man and this sounds like a great role for him.
JOE

i cannot wait 4 this i heard about it a while back and now mickey is on board this is gonna be great!
beavis

i'm glad CT didn't get the lead in this. MR is much better choice for this type of roll. i enjoyed reading the book and am looking forward to the movie.
nelson

i like rourke but he does'nt really look like him maybe weight gain and full beard will change my mind lol
Matty

Rourke can be anybody. Sin City much?
http://www.dlmentertainment.com DLM Entertainment

If you haven't seen any of the interviews Kuklinski did, I HIGHLY suggest you check them out. They are fantastic and they truly show how detached he really is from taking a life. He's a fantastic character and if they treat the subject matter with respect, Mickey should be able to knock this one out of the park. Had they gone with Channing Tatum, the real Richard Kuklinski (long since dead now) would rise from the grave and choke the shit out of everyone associated with that decision. But with Mickey on board, the Iceman would be proud.
Blue Silver

Mickey Rourke! Hell Yeah!!!
Cat

Mickey is awesome and will knock this role out of the park like a Ryan Howard homerun!
Pete

Great. As if movies about fictional killers aren't enough, now we get to have countless young men (and I'm sure old ones too) worshipping and glorifying a real killer.
Sabes

Lawl, Channing Tatum. Mickey Rourke is awesome though, can't wait to see what he does with this.
NJPfox

Channing Tatum......THANK GOD!!!! The role was tailor made for Mickey Rourke....on one hand a loving family man, Coach, BBQ'er...and on the other hand....he murders mafioso by feeding them to rats, alive!!! This is the only book I have ever read, lol...Im so excited about this film!!!! It took them long enough.
GoonieDog

Im glad they didnt get Channing for this but jeez he's got some credibility tho. Didnt anyone see A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints???
Squiggly_P

Easy fix for that brain-matter problem. You just take a large trashbag and make a hole on the bottom for your head and a couple more for your arms. Wear short-sleeve when you go murdering and you'll be all set. Afterwards, the bag is also a convenient way to transport any identifiables. Simply remove the head, hands and feet of your corpse and wrap them in the bag with a couple spare cobblestones. Tie it firmly and deposit into the nearest lake or river. Remember: No witnesses. Lure your potential victim into a secluded area, or your one trashbag may not be enough to hold all the witness' heads. Might want to bring extras, just in case.
me

this idiot wanted channing tatum as the lead for the iceman?! are you effing kidding me? thank god they didnt do that! mickey rourke is perfect for this role!