Rourke wanted to 'challenge' himself in 'Iron Man 2'

Mickey Rourke’s ‘Iron Man 2’ role is multi-layered.

The 57-year-old actor – who plays Russian bad guy Ivan Vanko in the action movie – claims he wanted to “challenge” himself in the role by portraying him as more than a comic book baddie.

He said: “I didn’t want to do a one-dimensional bad guy like you’d see in a comic book.

“Get some schmuck to do that. Hollywood always does that, especially when it’s a Russian bad guy. I wanted to add layers to it, represent where he’s coming from, and have a sense of humour.

“I want to challenge myself and challenge the audience to say, ‘I see something redeemable in him.’ That makes it more interesting and not so silly.”

Although he attempted to challenge himself, he struggled when asked to learn how to use a computer.

He told the Chicago Sun Times: “The guy’s supposed to be great on the computer. I don’t even know how to turn one on. They have a scene where I’m supposed to be using the computer, typing really quickly. I wouldn’t know a computer if it hit me in the head.”

Mickey visited a Russian prison to prepare for the role, something which taught him a lot about the inside workings of gangs in the country.

He said: “I saw a lot there at the prison - and I got a lot more. I talked to a guy at Russia, in my hotel, who had just gotten out two weeks earlier - we spent a couple of hours together, and in those two hours he took his clothes off and showed me all the crazy tattoos he had.

"He told me what the tattoos meant and talked about some of the businesses he was involved in over the years, some of the crimes he'd partaken in and what his ranking was in the prison. I found that interesting."