Oscar-nominated actor Mickey Rourke is livid about a GoFundMe campaign that drew attention to his alleged financial woes at the start of the new year.
The 73-year-old The Wrestler star claimed earlier this month that he had no involvement in a Jan 4 fundraiser established to help him avoid eviction by collecting $60,000 (RM243,420) to pay a Los Angeles landlord for overdue rent.
The campaign, believed to have been set up by members of Rourke’s management team, raised more than US$100,000 (RM405,700) before it was frozen less than a week after it launched.
On Jan 15, Rourke raged about the shame he suffered as a result of the seemingly charitable initiative and vowed revenge in a typo-ridden series of social media posts.
“Vicious cruel godamm lie to hustle money using my (expletive) name so (expletive) enbarassing,” one post from Rourke reads. “There will b severe repercussions to individual who did this very bad thing to me and anyone who knows me knows payback k will be goddamm severe!!!!!!”
According to Rourke, longtime friends who heard of the campaign offered him housing and financial help, which he insisted he would never ask of his fans.
“iam ‘sooo upset & enbarassed’ about ‘SCAM’ TO RAISE MONEY FOR ME!! WHICH WAS AS IVE STATED A CRUEL ENBARRASMENT,” Rourke continued in a separate post.
Rourke insisted his lawyer is working hard to reimburse those who donated, but admitted that 90% of the funds have yet to be returned. He also said he hopes the person who established the fundraiser doesn’t turn a profit.
Despite the actor claiming the GoFundMe was unauthorised, his manager, Kimberly Hines, has maintained it was set up with his knowledge and blessing. – New York Daily News/Tribune News Service
