Mel Gibson: the rise and fall of a Hollywood star

Mel Gibson's arrival in Hollywood was overwhelming. His second film, 'Mad Max' (1979), made him a superstar and one of the most desirable men in the world. And he was just 23!

For a long time, this New Yorker lived a fantastic career, but 40 years after his film debut, he faced many a cancellation.

Now the actor seeks redemption in a world that not so long ago idolized him. It sounds strange, so let's have a look at Gibson's story to see how he got to this point.

Mel Gibson (born on January 3, 1956) had all the necessary tools to take over the world. Acting talent, blue eyes and a mischievous (half) smile that melted the cameras.

At the time, people said he was the new Steve McQueen. The kind-hearted rebel with whom every day would be an adventure.

This perception was confirmed by People, who chose him as the 'Se*iest Man Alive' in 1985. He was the first of many to feature in the coveted annual election of the magazine.

In 1987 he became Martin Riggs, a legendary character, in the 'Lethal Weapon' saga.

Born in New York, raised in Sydney (Australia) and of Irish descent, Mel Gibson gave viewers across the world the feeling that he was one of them.

Mel Gibson dazzled the press and the public with his charm, humor, smile and eyes.

And so, for over 20 years, Mel Gibson built a filmography of successes.

To the 'Lethal Weapon' and 'Mad Max' sagas, he added successes like 'Hamlet' (1990), 'Forever Young' (1992) and 'Maverick' (1995).

'Braveheart', released in 1995, showed Mel Gibson's directing talent. The movie earned him the Oscar in five categories: Best Film, Director, Photography, Sound and Makeup.

Mel Gibson's success was such that producers would have given everything to have him in their movies. Did you know that the following classics almost starred Mel Gibson?

His name was considered for the roles of Oskar Schindler in 'Schlinder's List' (1993), James Bond in 'GoldenEye' (1995), Bruce Wayne in 'Batman' (1989), and Wolverine in 'X -Men' (2000).

Gibson turned down the role of Eliot Ness in 'The Untouchables' (1987) and Robin Hood in the 'Prince of Thieves' film (1991), which meant a huge favor for Kevin Costner. Something similar happened with 'Gladiator'. Gibson didn't want to do that role because he considered himself too old for it. He was 44 years old at the time, while Russell Crowe - who eventually became the gladiator - was 36.

In real life, Mel Gibson was a happy and loving family man. He married Robyn Moore in 1980 and had seven children with her.

Was Mel Gibson the perfect man? Reality and the passage of time showed otherwise.

Over the years, Mel Gibson has been involved in controversies brought on by his alcohol problems. He himself acknowledged this in several interviews. Gibson has had DUI charges in the US, Canada and Australia.

During one of his encounters with the police while driving druk, in July 2006, Gibson told them that "Jews are responsible for all the wars in the world." TMZ reported on the incident at the time.

It wasn't the only racist episode in the life of Mel Gibson. He also attacked the Latino and African-American communities, according to TMZ. Some blamed the alcohol for his racist remarks, arguing that it brought out Gibson's true personality.

His anti-Semitic thinking was clear in the film 'The Passion of the Christ' (2004), which he directed. The movie points to the Jews as the ones responsible for the crucifixion of Jesus.

The script was so problematic that no major production company wanted to fund 'The Passion of the Christ.' As a consequence, Gibson funded it himself. And with success:  production cost $30 million and the movie grossed over $611 million.

Obviously, Mel Gibson's image was no longer perfect. His shocking divorce from Robyn Moore,  in 2009, made things worse. Apart from Jeff Bezos and Rupert Murdoch, Mel Gibson signed the most expensive divorce in celebrity history. He had an estimated fortune of 850 million dollars and paid 400 million to his ex-wife.

The final straw for the separation, according to 'Vanity Fair', was his movie shoot for 'Apocalypto' (2006) in the jungle of Mexico. Production time went from two to nine months and moreover, the director began to drink heavily. A friend told Vanity Fair that Gibson appeared to drink water for most of the day, but "during meals he would switch to vodka, thinking no one noticed."

The marriage with his second wife, Oksana Grigorieva, lasted very little time. They had a daughter in October 2009 and got separated in April 2010. Grigorieva said she had gotten a beating from Gibson in early 2010, or so TMZ reported.

A source close to the couple told TMZ: "She tried to protect the baby during one of Gibson's violent episodes, and he hit her twice in the face, breaking her teeth." The actor got a restraining order from his ex-wife and daughter.

But the worst for Mel Gibson was a message he left on Oksana Grigorieva's answering machine. It was played in the court room, went public, and caused the actor's projects to get cancelled.

“You deserved it,” the actor said to his ex-wife. "If you get r***d by a pack of n*******, it'll be your fault. All right? Because you provoked it... You fragging ignorant b*t**!"

In his defense, Mel Gibson claimed he was drunk and that his words were taken out of context. But even with consideration of the entire transcript, the message doesn't make the actor look good at all.

In recent years, Mel Gibson tried love for a third time with the writer and former equestrian Rosalind Ross. She is 34 years younger than him and together they have two children. The actor has a total of ten children with three different women.

The actor has returned to acting, albeit in projects with much less impact. The series 'The Continental' (2023) and the movie 'Boneyard' (2024) are some of his most recent works.

He also returned to directing, in 2016, a decade after 'Apocalypta.' His movie 'Hacksaw Ridge' was nominated for an Academy Award in six categories, including Best Picture and Best Director. It seemed like Hollywood had forgiven him - or at least they didn't care about his behavior.

In case anyone wants to know whether Mel Gibson has any regrets about his past, all they need to do is look up his interview with Stephen Colbert on the 'Late Night Show'. It was one of the few media appearances he's done in recent years.

The talk show host asked if Gibson was sorry about anything he'd done, and he replied, emphatically: "No, nothing."
He added: "I'm not proud, but I've worked a lot with myself, I'm healthy, and I do what I love, which is telling stories."

Mel Gibson believes he will spend some time in purgatory, as a "temporary punishment before knowing God." That's what he told Stephen Colbert. Until then, the question remains whether Mel Gibson will ever come back in into the grace of the movie viewers and his colleagues. Time will tell.

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