In his acceptance speech, Springsteen joked "This is the only time I'm gonna be in competition with Clint Eastwood," who was nominated for his own song from the film Gran Torino. He thanked Rourke, who had personally reached out to Springsteen to write the song. Springsteen said, "Thank you brother, for a beautiful performance, thank you. Thanks for thinking of me." He also wished a happy birthday to his longtime sax player Clarence Clemons.

Wrestler director Darren Aronofsky recently told MTV News that Rourke did indeed write a letter to Springsteen, "a very long, heartfelt letter - and sent him the script," to convince the Boss to write a tune for the film. Springsteen wrote the song and a month later, performed it backstage at Giants Stadium for Aronofsky and Rourke. The director also revealed that since the movie was on a tight budget, "he gave us the song for free."

Rourke also won for Best Actor for the movie and revealed in his acceptance speech that Axl Rose donated "Sweet Child O Mine" to The Wrestler for free as well.