Mel Gibson
Mel Colm-Cille Gerard Gibson is an American actor and filmmaker. The recipient of multiple accolades, he is known for directing historical films as well for his action hero roles, particularly his breakout role as Max Rockatansky in the first three films of the post-apocalyptic series Mad Max and as Martin Riggs in the buddy cop series Lethal Weapon.
Born in Peekskill, New York, Gibson moved with his parents to Sydney, Australia, when he was 12 years old. He studied acting at the National Institute of Dramatic Art, where he starred opposite Judy Davis in a production of Romeo and Juliet. During the 1980s, he founded Icon Entertainment, a production company. Director Peter Weir cast him as one of the leads in the World War I drama Gallipoli, which earned Gibson a Best Actor Award from the Australian Film Institute.
In 1995, Gibson produced, directed, and starred in the war film Braveheart for which he won the Golden Globe Award for Best Director, the Academy Award for Best Director, and the Academy Award for Best Picture. He later directed and produced The Passion of the Christ, a biblical drama that was both financially successful and highly controversial. He received further critical notice for directing the action-adventure film Apocalypto, set in Mesoamerica during the early 16th century. His notable acting roles during this period were in Ransom, Payback, What Women Want, The Patriot, and Signs.
After several legal issues and controversial statements leaked to the public, Gibson's popularity in Hollywood declined, affecting his career. He subsequently starred in Edge of Darkness and Jodie Foster's The Beaver. His directorial comeback after an absence of 10 years, Hacksaw Ridge, won two Academy Awards.
Early life and education
Mel Colm-Cille Gerard Gibson was born on January 3, 1956, in Peekskill, New York, a suburb of New York City. into a family of Irish American descent, as the sixth of 11 children, and the second son of Hutton Gibson, a writer, and Irish-born Anne Patricia. Gibson's paternal grandmother was opera contralto Eva Mylott, who was born in Australia to Irish parents, while his paternal grandfather, John Hutton Gibson, was a millionaire tobacco businessman from the Southern United States. One of Gibson's younger brothers, Donal, is also an actor. Gibson's first name is derived from St Mel's Cathedral, situated in his mother's hometown of Longford. His second name, Colmcille, is also shared with an Irish saint.Gibson's father was awarded US$145,000 in a work-related-injury lawsuit against the New York Central Railroad on February 14, 1968, and soon afterwards relocated his family to West Pymble, Sydney, Australia. Gibson was 12 years old at the time. The move to his grandmother's native Australia was both financial and a way to avoid the draft of his eldest brother during the Vietnam War.
During his high school years, Gibson was educated by members of the Congregation of Christian Brothers at St Leo's Catholic College in Wahroonga, New South Wales.
Career
Overview
Gibson gained favorable notices from film critics when he first entered the cinematic scene, as well as comparisons to several classic movie stars. In 1982, Vincent Canby wrote that "Mr. Gibson recalls the young Steve McQueen... I can't define 'star quality,' but whatever it is, Mr. Gibson has it." Gibson has also been likened to "a combination of Clark Gable and Humphrey Bogart." Gibson's roles in the Mad Max series of films, Peter Weir's Gallipoli, and the Lethal Weapon series of films earned him the label of "action hero".Later, Gibson expanded into human dramas such as the Franco Zeffirelli film version of Hamlet, and comedic roles such as those in Maverick and What Women Want. He moved to directing and producing with The Man Without a Face, Braveheart, The Passion of the Christ, and Apocalypto. Jess Cagle of Time compared Gibson with Cary Grant, Sean Connery, and Robert Redford. Connery once suggested Gibson should play the next James Bond to Connery's "M". Gibson turned down the role, reportedly because he feared being typecast.
Acting
Gibson studied at the National Institute of Dramatic Art in Sydney. As students, Gibson and actress Judy Davis played the leads in Romeo and Juliet, and Gibson played the role of Queen Titania in an experimental production of A Midsummer Night's Dream. After graduation in 1977, Gibson immediately began work on the filming of Mad Max, but continued to work as a stage actor, and joined the State Theatre Company of South Australia in Adelaide. Gibson's theatrical credits include the character Estragon in Waiting for Godot, and the role of Biff Loman in a 1982 production of Death of a Salesman in Sydney. Gibson's most recent theatrical performance, opposite Sissy Spacek, was the 1993 production of Love Letters by A. R. Gurney, in Telluride, Colorado.While a student at NIDA, Gibson made his film debut in the 1977 film Summer City, for which he was paid $400. Gibson then played the title character in the film Mad Max. He was paid $9000 for this role. Shortly after making the film, he did a season with the South Australian Theatre Company. During this period, he shared a $30 a week apartment in Adelaide with his future wife Robyn Moore. After Mad Max, Gibson played a mentally slow youth in the film Tim. Gibson also appeared in Australian television series guest roles. He appeared in serial The Sullivans as naval lieutenant Ray Henderson, in police procedural Cop Shop, and in the pilot episode of prison serial Punishment which was produced in 1980, screened 1981.
Gibson joined the cast of the World War II action film Attack Force Z, which was not released until 1982 when Gibson had become a bigger star. Director Peter Weir cast Gibson as one of the leads in the World War I drama Gallipoli, which earned Gibson another Best Actor Award from the Australian Film Institute. Gallipoli also helped to earn Gibson the reputation of a serious, versatile actor and gained him the Hollywood agent Ed Limato. The sequel Mad Max 2 was his first hit in America, where it was released as The Road Warrior. Gibson again received positive notices for his role in Peter Weir's romantic thriller The Year of Living Dangerously. Following a one-year hiatus from film acting after the birth of his twin sons, Gibson took on the role of Fletcher Christian in The Bounty. Gibson earned his first million dollar salary for playing Max Rockatansky for the third time, in Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome.
Gibson's first American film was Mark Rydell's drama The River, in which he and Sissy Spacek played struggling Tennessee farmers. Gibson then starred in the Gothic romance Mrs. Soffel for Australian director Gillian Armstrong. He and Matthew Modine played condemned convict brothers opposite Diane Keaton as the warden's wife who visits them to read the Bible. In 1985, after working on four films in a row, Gibson took almost two years off at his Australian cattle station. He returned to play the role of Martin Riggs in Lethal Weapon, a film which helped to cement his status as a Hollywood "leading man". Gibson's next film was Robert Towne's Tequila Sunrise, followed by Lethal Weapon 2. Gibson next starred in three films back-to-back, all released in 1990: Bird on a Wire, Air America, and Hamlet.
During the 1990s, Gibson alternated between commercial and personal projects. His films in the first half of the decade were Forever Young, Lethal Weapon 3, Maverick, and Braveheart. He then starred in Ransom, Conspiracy Theory, Lethal Weapon 4, and Payback. Gibson also served as the speaking and singing voice of John Smith in Disney's Pocahontas.
Gibson was paid a record salary of $25 million to appear in The Patriot. It grossed over $100 million, as did two other films he featured in that year, Chicken Run and What Women Want. In 2002, Gibson appeared in the Vietnam War drama We Were Soldiers and M. Night Shyamalan's Signs, which became the highest-grossing film of Gibson's acting career.
Gibson's popularity declined after he had made some controversial statements.
While promoting Signs, Gibson said that he no longer wanted to be a movie star and would only act in film again if the script were truly extraordinary. In 2010, Gibson appeared in Edge of Darkness, which marked his first starring role since 2002 and was an adaptation of the BBC miniseries, Edge of Darkness. In June of the same year, Gibson was in Brownsville, Texas, filming scenes for the film Get the Gringo, about a career criminal put in a tough prison in Mexico.
In 2010, following an outburst at his ex-girlfriend that was made public, Gibson was dropped from the talent agency of William Morris Endeavor. Gibson was lined up for a small role in The Hangover Part II but he was removed from the film after the cast and crew objected to his involvement.
Gibson also played two villains: Luther Voz in Machete Kills in 2013, opposite Danny Trejo, and Conrad Stonebanks in The Expendables 3 opposite Sylvester Stallone in 2014.
Gibson appeared in the lead role of director S. Craig Zahler's police brutality-themed film Dragged Across Concrete, released in 2018. He then starred in The Professor and the Madman – he and the director both disowned the film.
Producing
After his success in Hollywood with the Lethal Weapon series, Gibson began to move into producing and directing. With partner Bruce Davey, Gibson formed Icon Productions in 1989 in order to make Hamlet.In late 1996, New Zealand producer Timothy White became founding head of a co-production venture between Fox and Gibson, called Fox-Icon, based at Fox Studios Australia in Sydney. The company failed to produce a single film, shutting down in December 1999.
Gibson has produced a number of projects for television, including a biopic on the Three Stooges and the 2008 PBS documentary Carrier. Icon has grown from being just a production company to also be an international distribution company and film exhibitor in Australia and New Zealand.
Gibson is credited as an executive producer of the 2023 movie Sound of Freedom, a film based on a true story which revolves around the topic of trafficking of children.