JoJo Siwa is taking the high road after Mickey Rourke’s “homophobic” comments towards her during their time on Celebrity Big Brother UK.
“I think I learned very, very quickly that Mickey is not a good man, right?” Siwa, 21, exclusively reveals in her Us Weekly cover story. “But two truths can exist. I can say Mickey’s not a good man. And I can say I have sympathy for Mickey.”
She explains, “And I think one thing that Mickey has not gotten in a very long time in his life is sympathy or a conversation about something rather than a celebrity story, a movie he was in.”
Siwa crossed paths with Rourke, 72, while competing on season 24 of Celebrity Big Brother UK where she came in third. During an April episode, Siwa called out the Wrestler actor for his behavior after he made negative remarks about her sexuality.
JoJo Siwa. Jordan Kirk / @ xingerxanger
During the episode, Rourke reportedly told costar Chris Hughes that he was “going to vote the lesbian out real quick” after Siwa confirmed that she liked girls and her partner was “non-binary.”
When Siwa heard about Rourke’s plan to vote her out because of her sexuality, she replied, “That’s homophobic, if that was your reasoning.”
Rourke received even more backlash after he was overheard saying, “I need a f**” during the same episode. According to reports, he gestured to Siwa when speaking and then said, “I’m not talking about you.”
When Hughes, 32, called him out for the comment, Rourke claimed, “I was talking about a cigarette.” Rourke’s actions led to him getting a strong warning from the show’s producers, who said his language was “offensive and unacceptable.”
Rourke later apologized to Siwa saying, “I want to apologize. I’ve got a habit of having a short fuse. And I don’t mean nothing by it. I do mean it [sorry]. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t say it to you.”
After his formal warning, Rourke decided to leave the Celebrity Big Brother house, a show spokesperson told Us on April 12.
That same month, Rourke’s rep Kimberly Hines issued a statement to Us about the scandal, saying, “Mickey speaks from his heart and means well. He is old school, direct and honest. I have worked closely with him for nine years and he is 100 percent authentically himself. There will never be another Mickey Rourke. Period.”
While many fans were outraged by Rourke’s comments, Siwa has remained the bigger person and stayed calm in the face of adversary.
“He apologized actually twice and then he wanted to learn,” Siwa tells Us, noting that although she hasn’t spoken to Rourke since he left the house, she is confident he didn’t get what he wanted out of their drama.
She says, “I do think Mickey and I were a perfect storm together because I think I didn’t give him what he wants, and he didn’t give me what I want. And so with that, we both had to meet in the middle and I had to do what I would’ve always done, which was swallow it, take it, and keep it pushing.”
According to the “Karma” singer, when Rourke realized that she “didn’t mind” his offensive comments he had to “keep walking forward” and pick another target.
“He got to see, like, we’re still OK. You can be a d*** to me and we can still have a conversation. You know what I mean? Like, it’s OK,” Siwa continues.
Now that the shock of their interaction has worn off, Siwa tells Us that she’s not sure she wants to have another conversation with Rourke.
“I was supposed to get his number. I did tell him, and I should follow through with this, I said, ‘I’m gonna call you every once in a while because I think you need a friend and I think that you don’t want me as your friend, and I really don’t wanna be your friend, but I think you need a friend and I’m gonna be the one that you need,” Siwa reveals.
Mickey Rourke said he is “ashamed” of his controversial behavior on Celebrity Big Brother UK. The Oscar-nominated actor, 72, was asked to leave the Big Brother house on Saturday, April 12, following a tense verbal confrontation with fellow housemate Chris Hughes. In scenes that aired on ITV in the U.K. on Sunday, April 13, Big […]
She claims that Rourke is “not a good man” but that doesn’t change who she is and how she plans to approach their relationship.
“You can [have] sympathy for somebody who’s not a good man. And everyone in life deserves a friend,” Siwa concludes.
While Siwa’s time on Celebrity Big Brother UK has been a hot topic for weeks, she has moved on and is focusing on her new music. Siwa’s “Bulletproof” single drops on Friday, May 16, with a video that she directed and choreographed.
Siwa is also embarking on a U.S.-based tour called Live With JoJo beginning in July.
Watch the exclusive video above to learn more about Siwa’s journey on Celebrity Big Brother UK and beyond — and pick up the latest issue of Us Weekly, on newsstands now.
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