Actor Mickey Rourke to play gay rugby player in a biopic

Toronto: Actor Mickey Rourke has confirmed that he will be playing the lead role in a movie about gay rugby player Gareth Thomas.

"I read the story, it`s one of the toughest, hardest sports... and to be a man that plays rugby that is gay, to live with that secret for the amount of years Gareth had, to perform at the high level he performed at, it takes a lot of courage," torontosun.com quoted Rourke as saying. The 58-year-old star admits he has already started training to master Thomas` Welsh accent. Thomas hit headlines last year when he became the first rugby player to come out as a gay man. IANS