The '80s belonged to Mickey Rourke: Body Heat, Diner, Rumble Fish, The Pope of Greenwich Village, 9 1/2 Weeks, Angel Heart, Barfly. The soft voice, the black eyes, the air of gentle menace. The critics agreed: Rourke could act his ass off. But then he self-destructed. He left Hollywood, returned to Miami, fell in with a bad crowd. He took up boxing, presided over the systematic deconstruction of his face. Now, after five nose operations and a shattered cheekbone, Rourke has returned to acting with four memorable character roles in the last two years. Next up: a turn as a lawyer in Man on Fire, starring Denzel Washington, directed by Tony Scott.

ESQ: You were gone for a while, but now you're back.

MR: I left for about five years, but I didn't leave, like, sort of the right way.

ESQ: Why did you decide to leave acting?

MR: I don't know. I just got fed up with, uh, with, uh...I don't know what [an embarrassed laugh]. It's a bit foggy to me, too. I just didn't really--I wasn't really--I didn't have my head screwed on right, really. I can't put it in a sentence why I left.

ESQ: What was the highlight of your boxing career?

MR: I fought a kid named Darrell "Big Chief" Miller in the Tokyo Dome. I had the flu, but I stopped the guy in the first round. He threw a wild left hook, and I hit him on the chin with a right hand, and down he went. I was so sick, I couldn't have gone two rounds.

ESQ: Do you regret leaving Hollywood?

MR: Of course I do. 'Cause, you know, when I decided to come back to work, the door wasn't just closed. It was more or less like I had slammed the door on all my fingers and toes. This is a cliquey little fuckin' business, and you gotta keep your mouth shut. I didn't play the game.

ESQ: So now you're trying to make amends?

MR: Let's put it this way: I'm trying not to trip over the same rock twice.

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