Mickey Rourke says he was nervous about Gareth Thomas reading the script to his film for the first time.
Rourke is bringing a biopic about Thomas - the first openly gay professional rugby union player - to the big screen, and has penned the script for the project.
Speaking to So Film, Rourke said: "I was really nervous asking him to read it, because it's his life story. And because there were others who wanted to make the movie.
"But he told his manager, who was negotiating with a studio: 'I trust Mickey'."
The movie will be called The Welshman, and will also see Rourke star.
And the Oscar nominated actor says he felt that he could identify with Thomas when he met him.
"The day I met Gareth Thomas, this man with this secret, this terrible shame, I said to myself that I've also been through hard times. Just like him."
Before we see Rourke in The Welshman, he will be reprising the role of Marv in Sin City: A Dame To Kill For.
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