Mickey Rourke’s Celebrity Big Brother salary has reportedly been drastically slashed after his removal from the show.
The Oscar-nominated actor of films including The Wrestler, Angel Heart and Barfly was this year’s star signing, receiving a reported £500,000 for a possible three-week appearance.
But his hefty fee is said to have been reduced after he was kicked off the show after just six days.
According to reports, Rourke’s fee “was worked out on a pro rata basis” and he has “lost a huge amount by leaving the show early”.
The Sun claims that, instead of a hefty £500,000, which positioned him as the highest-paid contestant, Rourke will receive £50,000. A source said: “If a celebrity gets removed from the house, they don’t get the full fee. It’s as simple as that and they will be discussing that with him.”
Rourke, 72, was the cause of significant controversy during his time in the house, ultimately being ejected by producers for making a sexual comment towards The Only Way is Essex star Ella Rae Wise, 24, and for making threatening behaviour towards Love Island contestant Chris Hughes, 32.
Rourke grew irate when Hughes, in character as a pirate for a shopping task, “eyeballed” him. Rourke later apologised to Hughes, and told Big Brother he was “ashamed” of his actions and blamed it on his “short fuse”.
The star had previously been given a formal warning by Big Brother for making homophobic comments towards 21-year-old Dance Moms star JoJo Siwa.
While entering the house on 7 April, Rourke was criticised for “ogling” the reality show’s co-host AJ Odudu, which caused viewers to call for the actor to be axed from the series.
In a statement, a spokesperson for the programme told The Independent: “All Housemates receive Respect and Inclusion training and an extensive briefing from the Big Brother Senior team to prepare them for living in the House and to set out Big Brother’s expectation for appropriate behaviour and language.
Mickey Rourke was removed from ‘CBB’ after ‘aggressive’ Chris Hughes run-in (ITV)
“Housemates are monitored 24 hours a day and instances of inappropriate behaviour are dealt with appropriately and timely.” Rourke’s representatives declined to comment.
