Megan Fox has signed to play an angel opposite Mickey Rourke in ”Passion Plays.”

The indie drama written and directed by Mitch Glazer stars Rourke as a down-on-his-heels trumpet player in 1950s Los Angeles. His character finds redemption after attempting to save Fox’s angel from a gangster.

This could be interesting, not only because of Rourke and Fox, but because they’re paired with Glazer, who wrote the screenplay for Al Pacino’s “The Recruit” and Bill Murray’s “Scrooged.” It’s really kind of a mixed bag of personalities and brands here.

I just wonder if Rourke will be able to play roles other than a down-and-out character like his Randy the Ram in “The Wrestler.” Talk about typecasting.

Then again, his upcoming roles include a villain in “Iron Man 2” and a hit man in Walter Hill’s “St. Vincent.” I think everyone is cheering him on from the sidelines.

Photo Credit: Newscom

I hope Mickey Rourke has one giant mantle someplace to put all the awards he’s winning. And someone should definitely create a coffee table book out of the speeches he’s giving.

The crowd at the Spirit Awards yesterday gave him a standing-o after his uncensored acceptance speech for winning the best actor award. The 56-year-old comeback kid and star of "The Wrestler" dedicated the award to his beloved Chihuahua, Loki, who passed away last week.

"I’ve just gotten thousands of letters from strangers and people that know me about my dog that died six days ago, Loki. This is for you, baby."

Rourke also gave a shout-out to his friend, actor Eric Roberts, calling Roberts "probably the best actor I have ever worked with. I don’t know why in the last 15 years, no one has given him the chance to show his s— again."

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The Oscars are coming right up! ABC’s live telecast from Hollywood’s Kodak Theatre will air this Sunday, Feb. 22, 2009 at 5 pm PT/8 pm ET.

I’ve been scouring the Web to see who’s got the best coverage, and The Hollywood Reporter has some excellent videos of filmmakers and actors up for awards on Sunday. Read on to see what Clint Eastwood, Ron Howard, Hugh Jackman, Amy Adams and others have to say about their projects.

In this clip, Ron Howard talks about making "Frost/Nixon," while Clint Eastwood gives his take on leading lady, Angelina Jolie:

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The little movie that could — “Slumdog Millionaire” – continued its reign of dominance on the awards circuit, taking home seven awards from the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA).

The film earned awards for best film, director (Danny Boyle), cinematography and adapted screenplay for writer Simon Beaufoy.

But my favorite new speech-giver is Mickey Rourke, who once again earned a best actor prize for his role in “The Wrestler.” As with his Golden Globes speech, he pulled no punches and dropped a few f-bombs among other colorful language. I can appreciate that.

After the jump, see the full list of BAFTA winners…

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Well, sort of. Mickey Rourke just signed to star in “St. Vincent,” a movie about a hitman who returns to New York to complete a botched hit.

Here’s the catch: His character masquerades as a priest who ends up hearing the confession of the man he’s supposed to take out.

Am I misremembering, or didn’t Rourke have a priest in NYC who helped him through some rough times? Maybe that was another guy who dropped out of Hollywood for a while…

Directing “St. Vincent” is Walter Hill, who also directed Rourke in the 1989 gangster film “Johnny Handsome.” Shooting is scheduled to start later this year.

Catch Rourke in “The Wrestler,” in theaters right now. Read my review here.

Image: TM and copyright 20th Century Fox Film Corp.; Source: Reuters/Hollywood Reporter

In my top five Mickey Rourke movies, I mentioned that “The Wrestler” included plenty of bloody scenes, as well as a few outright sex scenes. Emil called me out on it in the comments section, noting that just because a movie has sex and violence doesn’t make it bad. So true, Emil! Thanks for the reminder.

And thanks for my next Film Gecko Five - Bloodiest Movies. But I need your help, Geckos, because I don’t watch a lot of the blood and gore. What are your favorite bloody movies?

I’ll start with a poll, but feel free to add your own or tell me your favorites in the comments section. After a few days, I’ll pick the top five and run a Film Gecko Five. Let’s go! n

Image: Amazon.com

I loved “The Wrestler,” and it made me think back to my favorite Mickey Rourke movies. Here’s my top five below. See if you agree and if not, tell me your favorites in the comments section.

5. “Diner” (1982). Rourke played Robert “Boogie” Sheftell in this classic that also starred Kevin Bacon, Timothy Daly, Daniel Stern, and Steve Guttenberg. The movie is set in 1959 Baltimore and follows a bunch of college-aged guys on their journey into adulthood. [IMDB Page]

4. “The Rainmaker” (1997). Big fan of John Grisham books and movies here, and this is a fab film directed by Francis Ford Coppola and starring Matt Damon, Danny DeVito and Claire Danes. Rourke played a character named Bruiser Stone. [IMDB Page]

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I saw "The Wrestler" with my 14-year-old son (I don’t recommend it, though – too much sex), and without knowing anything about the storyline, he thought it was a documentary. That’s how good Mickey Rourke is in this role. He’s not just playing a broken down shell of a man who’s all alone. He actually IS that man. So I’m guessing when he thanked his dogs in his Golden Globe speech — "sometimes all a man’s got is his dogs" — he knew what he was talking about.

And watching the movie, it’s hard to imagine anyone else in this role. They couldn’t have cast some pretty boy who’s at the top of his game. It just wouldn’t have been authentic. So … kudos to whomever cast Mickey Rourke in "The Wrestler." Well done.

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The Today Show’s Matt Lauer caught up with comeback kid Mickey Rourke on his Oscar nomination for "The Wrestler." Take a look:

I’m not surprised that "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" and "Slumdog Millionaire" were top dogs in Oscar noms, announced earlier today. Both films are up for Best Picture, as well as director and screenplay.

Honestly? I think they should just give everything to "Slumdog Millionaire" now, because that’s going to walk away with most awards.

I’m bummed but not surprised that "The Dark Knight" was shut out of the major categories, except for an expected Best Supporting Actor nod for Heath Ledger. The movie did get eight nominations, mostly in technical categories.

The Academy Awards will be handed out Sunday, Feb. 22, 2009 in Los Angeles at the Kodak Theater.

After the jump, the entire list of nominees and my picks…

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