Is Redemption Possible For Mel Gibson?
Mar. 28, 2023 • By Scarlett O’Malley
DescriptionAn essay about Mel Gibson and how his many flaws (and problematic views) may block him from ever reaching the same status he once held.
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ImageThe Academy Awards
Mel Gibson was People Magazine's first-ever Sexiest Man Alive, and one of the most renowned actors and directors in the world. In his early career, Gibson played principal roles in the popular movie franchises Mad Max and Lethal Weapon, which launched him into international stardom. But fame and fortune has never come without controversy. Gibson's life parallels William Shakespeare's notorious story arc of the tragic hero, where a tragic flaw in an otherwise decent person unravels everything they have or had, leading to their ultimate downfall. Mel Gibson was once a beloved actor and director, but as his controversial anti-Semitic views were uncovered, his career fell apart, being a perfect example of a tragic hero.Controversial upbringing—and the unique beliefs instilled by Gibson’s father—lead to problematic incidences in Mel’s life. Born Mel Columcille Gerard Gibson on January 3, 1956, in Peekskill, New York, his family relocated to Sydney after the start of the Vietnam War, all in hopes of escaping another military draft. They remained in Australia for the rest of Mel’s childhood. His parents, Hutton and Anna Gibson, were Roman Catholics of Irish descent who raised their 11 children with traditional but anti-Semitic ideologies. "His father, a World War II veteran, was a Catholic fundamentalist who believed the Second Vatican Council—which modernized the church—was a 'Masonic plot backed by the Jews'" (Grisar). In 1988, Hutton published the book Is the Pope Catholic? Paul VI's Legacy: Catholicism?, capitalizing on his belief in sedevacantism, the idea that the head of the Roman Catholic Church is not a valid Pope because Catholic leaders have been committing heresies since Vatican II (1962). Thus, there is no true Pope, and the position has remained vacant since the 1960s. Hutton was inspired to write his book in response to Pope Paul VI issuing the declaration Nostra Aetate, a document stating the relation of the Church with non-Christian religions of the Second Vatican Council. Pope Paul VI stated that he repudiated the idea of a collective, multigenerational Jewish guilt for the crucifixion of Jesus. "Decades later… Hutton Gibson is interviewed by radio host Steve Feuerstein and claims that 'most of' the Holocaust was 'fiction;' that Holocaust museums are a 'gimmick to collect money;' and that there were more Jews in Europe after World War II than before" (Grisar). Hutton made several other appearances on far-right-winged radio shows after Mel’s great success with The Passion of the Christ movie, in 2004. Hutton adds that he believed Pope Benedict XVI is a homosexual and that half the people in the Vatican are queer. (Grisar). All things considered, young Mel found great inspiration in the words of his father and in his deep connection to his faith, which is heavily displayed in his future box office successes. Mel Gibson quickly gained stature from his immediate rise to fame. He attended St. Leo's Catholic College, an all-boys religous high school, and finished his education at Asquith Boys High School in New South Wales, Australia. He was considering becoming a chef or a journalist after finishing his required schooling. Luckily, "...his sister submitted an application on his behalf to the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA) in Sydney. He decided to audition, and despite having no prior acting experience, he was accepted into the drama school” (Mel Gibson Biography). Gibson made his stage debut in a NIDA production of Romeo and Juliet, and his screen debut in the low-budget film Summer City in 1977. Following his graduation, Mel joined the Southern Australian Theater Company, where he appeared in title roles in classical productions, including Oedipus and Henry IV (Mel Gibson Biography). He moved to mainstream cinema in 1979 with his role as a futuristic warrior in Mad Max. “Furthermore, Mad Max became the biggest commercial success of any Australian film to date, grossing more than $100 million worldwide” (Mel Gibson Biography). Gibson received several Australian film awards, in addition to gaining international recognition with his American film debut in 1984’s The River, which earned four Academy Award nominations. "Gibson returned to the screen with the blockbuster hit, Lethal Weapon (1987), playing volatile cop, Martin Riggs, opposite Danny Glover… The success of Lethal Weapon inspired three sequels… all featuring Glover and Gibson in their respective roles as 'good cop' and 'bad cop' (Mel Gibson Biography). Gibson made his directorial debut in The Man Without a Face, a movie in which he stars as a severely disfigured burn victim. “Gibson released his most passionate project to date in 1995, directing and starring as 13th-century Scottish nobleman Sir William Wallace in the medieval epic Braveheart. The film went on to triumph at the Oscars, winning top honors in five categories, including Best Picture and Best Director” (Mel Gibson Biography). In the following years, Mel’s career continued to flourish with more box office hits, including The Patriot, What Women Want, and Signs, leading up to his personal favorite, and most controversial movie, The Passion of the Christ.Mel’s reversal of fortune began when it was announced that he would be making a film about the death of Jesus, The Passion of the Christ, which depicts the gruesome final 12 hours of Jesus Christ's life, including the trial in which the Jewish people call for his death. The blockbuster made headlines for its controversial adaptation of the crucifixion. The importance of faith, religion, and sin are common themes in the movies in which Gibson is a part of. "Before the release of The Passion of the Christ, former New York assemblyman Dov Hikind led around 50 Jews to the Fox News offices in Manhattan to dissuade 20th Century Fox from distributing the film, claiming its content suggests that Jews as a people bear collective guilt for the death of Christ.” (Grisar). Not only members of the Jewish community found problems with the script, “the ADL and the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops issuing a statement calling the screenplay 'one of the most troublesome texts, relative to anti-Semitic potential, that any of us had seen in 25 years'" (Grisar). Many Jewish people were upset about the release of The Passion of the Christ due to its heavy depiction of them as evil. When the movie released in theaters, many critics noted that the Jews are portrayed as grotesque and hook-nosed based on deeply rooted anti-Semitic stereotypes. The film harps on the fact that Jews should and do feel guilty for the crucifixion of Jesus, which is not factual. "Caiaphas, the Jewish priest shown leading the charge against Jesus, remorsefully utters the controversial line 'His blood [is] on us and on our children!' Due to lobbying by Jewish groups, the subtitle for the line is removed but the audio for the line [is] delivered" (Grisar). Gibson’s peripeteia after disrespecting the wish of the Jewish community ultimately led to the downfall of his professional career. But this was not the end, as his personal life also slowly began to crumble.The problems that culminated in a single public incident tarnished Mel Gibson’s reputation forever. In 2006, L.A. County Sheriff’s Deputy, James Mee, pulled Gibson over for reckless driving on the Pacific Coast Highway, where he was then arrested for driving under the influence. "After informing Gibson, who is drunk, that he will be detained, the actor says, apropos of nothing, 'F—ing Jews… The Jews are responsible for all the wars in the world,' before asking Mee, 'Are you a Jew?' [Mee is Jewish]" (Grisar). Mel has since publicly admitted to battling alcoholism for all of his adult life. The headlines that followed the anti-Semitic rant shocked many Gibson fans that saw him as a hero and family man, but this was not the first time he was on record sharing his controversial opinions. In 1996, fellow movie star, Winona Ryder, and her friend, Kevyn Aucoin, who is gay, attended a crowded party where they met Gibson. “Ryder claims that Gibson, who was intoxicated, asked Aucoin, 'Oh wait, am I gonna get AIDS?' At some point, Jews come up in conversation and Gibson allegedly asks Ryder, 'You’re not an oven dodger, are you' (Grisar)? After Gibson’s 2006 arrest, his publicist issued a statement to The New York Times: "I acted like a person completely out of control when I was arrested and said things that I do not believe to be true and which are despicable," Gibson said. "I am deeply ashamed of everything I said, and I apologize to anyone I may have offended."' (Grisar). Perhaps Gibson's substance abuse issues unleashed what was truly in his heart. Although he apologized for the statements he made in 2006, should he be forgiven for his actions?Mel Gibson chose to ignore his past and created a new image for himself in Hollywood. In interviews published in the 2010s, Gibson reveals that he does not like when people bring up his controversy. “Gibson says he feels 'annoyed' when people mention his 2006 anti-Semitic tirade and said that it was 'unfair' that he had a reputation as being prejudiced" (Grisar). Mel claims that the media is trying to paint him in a bad light, instead of taking responsibility for his actions and statements that were targeted against the Jewish community. "'I don’t understand why after 10 years it’s any kind of issue,' Gibson says on Variety’s Playback podcast. 'Surely if I was really what they say I was, some kind of hater, there’d be evidence of actions somewhere.'" (Grisar). By ignoring his reckless actions and hateful speech, Mel causes more harm and disappointment to his fanbase. In more recent years, Mel has rediscovered directing success with his 2016 movie, Hacksaw Ridge, in which Gibson received an Oscar nomination for best director. Mel Gibson was adored by the world for his acting and directing until his famously upsetting views came to light, demonstrating his tragic flaw. Evidently, Mel’s father had a negative influence on his son's character, Hutton's overbearing religious beliefs and Mel's substance abuse issues culminating in his downfall. Gibson shows his hubris and lack of self-awareness when he reflects on the anti-Semitic statements he made over 15 years ago, fulfilling all the requirements of a tragic hero by his rise to fame and fortune, followed by a drunken statement revealing the flaw deep within. Mel’s story has not ended, though. His latest movie, Father Stu, focuses on the theme of redemption. Will Mel ever be redeemed for his past issues, or has his tragic flaw forever tarnish his reputation? Only the future can tell.
Sources
Biography.com, editor. "Mel Gibson Biography." Biography.com, 7 Nov. 2017, www.biography.com/actor/mel-gibson#:~:text=He%20was%20the%20sixth%20of,Sydney%2C%20where%20he%20attended%20St. Accessed 24 Mar. 2022.
Grisar, PJ. "Absolutely every anti-Semitic thing Mel Gibson has ever said." Forward, 24 June 2020, forward.com/culture/449521/mel-gibson-anti-semitism-timeline-winona-ryder/. Accessed 14 Mar. 2022.
Hitchens, Christopher. "Mel Gibson Isn't Just an Angry Narcissist." Slate, 19 July 2010, slate.com/news-and-politics/2010/07/mel-gibson-s-tirades-are-the-distilled-violence-cruelty-and-bigotry-of-right-wing-catholic-ideology.html. Accessed 15 Mar. 2022.
Hyde, Marina. "In Hollywood, nothing gets resurrected more often than Mel Gibson." The Guardian, 19 Oct. 2021, theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/oct/19/hollywood-mel-gibson-antisemitism-domestic-violence-racism. Accessed 15 Mar. 2022.
"Mel Gibson charged with DUI." The Denver Post, 1 Aug. 2006, www.denverpost.com/2006/08/01/mel-gibson-charged-with-dui/. Accessed 14 Mar. 2022.
Sneider, Jeff. "What Happened to Hollywood's Mel Gibson Boycott?" Los Angeles Magazine, 17 Nov. 2021, www.lamag.com/culturefiles/what-happened-to-hollywoods-mel-gibson-boycott/. Accessed 15 Mar. 2022.
