Gibson Plans Holocaust Miniseries
Mel Gibson is stirring passions again with his latest project — a nonfiction TV movie set against the backdrop of the Holocaust.
Gibson's Con Artist Productions is developing "Flory" for ABC, based on the true story of a Dutch Jew named Flory Van Beek and her non-Jewish boyfriend who sheltered her from the Nazis, The New York Times and Variety reported in Wednesday editions.
Critics claimed Gibson's blockbuster film "Passion of the Christ" was anti-Semitic, a charge Gibson has denied. Gibson's father also is on the record denying that the Holocaust took place.
"For (Gibson) to be associated with this movie is cause for concern," Rafael Medoff, director of the David S. Wyman Institute for Holocaust Studies in Melrose Park, Pa., told the Times. "He needs to come clean that he repudiates Holocaust denial."
Gibson was in Mexico working on his upcoming film "Apocalypto" and couldn't be reached for comment.
Quinn Taylor, ABC's senior vice president in charge of television movies, had a harsh reply for early critics.
"Shut up and wait to see the movie, and then judge," Taylor, who oversaw ABC's Emmy-winning miniseries "Anne Frank," told Variety. "I'm not about to rewrite history. I'm going to explore an amazing love story that we can all learn from and, hopefully, be inspired by."
As recounted in the 1998 memoir "Flory: Survival in the Valley of Death," Van Beek and her husband survived the sinking of their ship as they tried to flee Holland, then three years of hiding during the German occupation.
The movie has not been formally green-lighted and wouldn't air until at least the 2006-07 season.
if this news were about Tom Cruise the headline would read...
Cruise Plans Holocaust
give it about 2 years after the kid is born and it'll read...
Cruise and Mini Cruise plan series of Holocausts
Gibson Pushing Sci-Fi
After Apocalypto, a telekinetic tale...
Mel Gibson is returning to science fiction with an interesting-sounding film called Push. Variety reports that Gibson's Icon Productions and Infinity Features out of Vancouver are getting together to finance and produce the picture, which is to be a sci-fi political thriller.
Push is the story of some American agents with telekinetic and clairvoyant skills who have taken refuge in Beijing, China, to escape the clutches of US intelligence services. To stay free forever, however, they must undertake one last, daring mission.
The film is expected to begin shooting in 2007, with production taking place in China. The producers already have a script in hand which was written by David Bourla (Nostradamus).
It's not confirmed yet whether or not Gibson himself will star or direct. Icon and Infinity have another joint project currently underway: Butterfly on a Wheel, a psychological thriller that stars Pierce Brosnan.
Quote from: MacGuffin on March 24, 2006, 01:35:58 PM
Push is the story of some American agents with telekinetic and clairvoyant skills who have taken refuge in Beijing, China, to escape the clutches of US intelligence services. To stay free forever, however, they must undertake one last, daring mission.
this premise is also affecting me deeply. what a great year for premises.
a premise is like a teaser with words.
Mel Gibson Arrested on Suspicion of DUI
Mel Gibson was arrested early Friday for suspicion of driving under the influence, a Sheriff's Department spokesman said.
Gibson's vehicle was speeding eastbound on the Pacific Coast Highway when officers stopped him at 2:36 a.m., Sheriff's spokesman Steve Whitmore said.
Gibson, 50, was booked at the Lost Hills Sheriff's station at 4:06 a.m., according to department records. The actor-director was cited and released, Whitmore said. Bail was set at $5,000.
"The investigation is ongoing," Whitmore said. "As we would do with anyone, we don't want to release any more since the information is fragmentary."
Gibson's spokesman, Alan Nierob, said he was looking into the matter.
Gibson won a best-director Oscar for 1995's "Braveheart."
Like his 2004 religious blockbuster, "The Passion of the Christ," which was shot in Aramaic and Latin, his new film, "Apocalypto," was done in an ancient tongue, Yucatec Maya.
Gibson has starred in the "Lethal Weapon" and "Mad Max" films, "What Women Want" and "The Man Without a Face" among other movies.
Gibson's Anti-Semitic Tirade -- Alleged Cover Up
TMZ has learned that Mel Gibson went on a rampage when he was arrested Friday on suspicion of drunk driving, hurling religious epithets. TMZ has also learned that the Los Angeles County Sheriff's department had the initial report doctored to keep the real story under wraps.
TMZ has four pages of the original report prepared by the arresting officer in the case, L.A. County Sheriff's Deputy James Mee. According to the report, Gibson became agitated after he was stopped on Pacific Coast Highway and told he was to be detained for drunk driving Friday morning in Malibu. The actor began swearing uncontrollably. Gibson repeatedly said, "My life is f****d." Law enforcement sources say the deputy, worried that Gibson might become violent, told the actor that he was supposed to cuff him but would not, as long as Gibson cooperated. As the two stood next to the hood of the patrol car, the deputy asked Gibson to get inside. Deputy Mee then walked over to the passenger door and opened it. The report says Gibson then said, "I'm not going to get in your car," and bolted to his car. The deputy quickly subdued Gibson, cuffed him and put him inside the patrol car.
Once inside the car, a source directly connected with the case says Gibson began banging himself against the seat. The report says Gibson told the deputy, "You mother f****r. I'm going to f*** you." The report also says "Gibson almost continually [sic] threatened me saying he 'owns Malibu' and will spend all of his money to 'get even' with me."
The report says Gibson then launched into a barrage of anti-Semitic statements: "F*****g Jews... The Jews are responsible for all the wars in the world." Gibson then asked the deputy, "Are you a Jew?"
The deputy became alarmed as Gibson's tirade escalated, and called ahead for a sergeant to meet them when they arrived at the station. When they arrived, a sergeant began videotaping Gibson, who noticed the camera and then said, "What the f*** do you think you're doing?"
A law enforcement source says Gibson then noticed another female sergeant and yelled, "What do you think you're looking at, sugar tits?"
We're told Gibson took two blood alcohol tests, which were videotaped, and continued saying how "f****d" he was and how he was going to "f***" Deputy Mee.
Gibson was put in a cell with handcuffs on. He said he needed to urinate, and after a few minutes tried manipulating his hands to unzip his pants. Sources say Deputy Mee thought Gibson was going to urinate on the floor of the booking cell and asked someone to take Gibson to the bathroom.
After leaving the bathroom, Gibson then demanded to make a phone call. He was taken to a pay phone and, when he didn't get a dial tone, we're told Gibson threw the receiver against the phone. Deputy Mee then warned Gibson that if he damaged the phone he could be charged with felony vandalism. We're told Gibson was then asked, and refused, to sign the necessary paperwork and was thrown in a detox cell.
Deputy Mee then wrote an eight-page report detailing Gibson's rampage and comments. Sources say the sergeant on duty felt it was too "inflammatory." A lieutenant and captain then got involved and calls were made to Sheriff's headquarters. Sources say Mee was told Gibson's comments would incite a lot of "Jewish hatred," that the situation in Israel was "way too inflammatory." It was mentioned several times that Gibson, who wrote, directed, and produced 2004's "The Passion of the Christ," had incited "anti-Jewish sentiment" and "For a drunk driving arrest, is this really worth all that?"
We're told Deputy Mee was then ordered to write another report, leaving out the incendiary comments and conduct. Sources say Deputy Mee was told the sanitized report would eventually end up in the media and that he could write a supplemental report that contained the redacted information -- a report that would be locked in the watch commander's safe.
Initially, a Sheriff's official told TMZ the arrest occurred "without incident." On Friday night, Sheriff's spokesman Steve Whitmore told TMZ: "The L.A. County Sheriff's Department investigation into the arrest of Mr. Gibson on suspicion of driving under the influence will be complete and will contain every factual piece of evidence. Nothing will be sanitized. There was absolutely no favoritism shown to this suspect or any other. When this file is presented to the Los Angeles County District Attorney, it will contain everything. Nothing will be left out."
Gibson's rep Alan Nierob tells TMZ: "We are unaware of any of the information you mentioned in your email pertaining to a police report."
That is almost... almost... too good to be true.
Mel Gibson's Statement on His DUI Arrest
The following is the complete text of Mel Gibson's statement regarding his arrest for investigation of driving under the influence of alcohol:
"After drinking alcohol on Thursday night, I did a number of things that were very wrong and for which I am ashamed. I drove a car when I should not have, and was stopped by the L.A. County sheriffs. The arresting officer was just doing his job and I feel fortunate that I was apprehended before I caused injury to any other person.
"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. I am deeply ashamed of everything I said and I apologize to anyone who I have offended.
"Also, I take this opportunity to apologize to the deputies involved for my belligerent behavior. They have always been there for me in my community and indeed probably saved me from myself. I disgraced myself and my family with my behavior and for that I am truly sorry.
"I have battled the disease of alcoholism for all of my adult life and profoundly regret my horrific relapse. I apologize for any behavior unbecoming of me in my inebriated state and have already taken necessary steps to ensure my return to health."
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060731/ap_en_ot/gibson_remarks
Hollywood split over Mel Gibson's future
By SANDY COHEN, AP Entertainment Writer 1 hour, 45 minutes ago
LOS ANGELES - A stunned Hollywood debated the future of one of its biggest stars Sunday as a sheriff's watchdog launched an investigation into a possible cover up of a leaked report that quoted
Mel Gibson unleashing a tirade of anti-Semitic remarks during a drunken driving arrest.
One media expert said Gibson irreparably damaged his career with his "crazy" behavior following his arrest by Los Angeles County Sheriff's deputies in Malibu early Friday. Charges of anti-Semitism were also leveled against the actor-director with the release of his 2004 blockbuster "The Passion of the Christ."
"It's a nuclear disaster for him," said publicist Michael Levine, who has represented
Michael Jackson and
Charlton Heston, among others. "I don't see how he can restore himself."
The entertainment Web site TMZ posted what it said were four pages from the original arrest report, which quoted Gibson as launching an expletive-laden "barrage of anti-Semitic remarks" after he was stopped on Pacific Coast Highway.
According to the report, in addition to threatening the arresting deputy and trying to escape, Gibson said, "The Jews are responsible for all the wars in the world," and asked the officer, James Mee, "Are you a Jew?"
The report has not been made public, but the Los Angeles Times reported Sunday that it had independently verified its authenticity.
Gibson's publicist, Alan Nierob, would not elaborate beyond a nonspecific apology Gibson issued Saturday. Sheriff's sources also declined to comment on Gibson's alleged remarks.
Studio executives, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the matter, were divided on how Gibson's behavior would affect his career. One noted that people have short memories, including filmmakers who might want to profit from Gibson's star power.
Filmgoers, too, could overlook much if the film is perceived as worthwhile.
"Usually it comes down to the marketing of the movie and does the average person want to see the film," said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box office tracking firm Exhibitor Relations.
The Office of Independent Review, a department watchdog panel, has opened an investigation into whether authorities gave Gibson preferential treatment by covering up his alleged inflammatory comments, said its chief attorney, Mike Gennaco.
"Assuming that the report was excised, then the question is was it done for a good reason within regulations," he said.
Gibson has filmed public service announcements for Sheriff Lee Baca's relief committee dressed in a sheriff's uniform.
"There is no cover-up," Baca told the Los Angeles Times. "Our job is not to (focus) on what he said. It's to establish his blood-alcohol level when he was driving and proceed with the case. Trying someone on rumor and innuendo is no way to run an investigation, at least one with integrity."
Gibson said in his apology that he said "despicable" things to deputies during his arrest.
"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.
Abraham H. Foxman, national director of the Anti-Defamation League, called Gibson's apology "unremorseful and insufficient."
"It's not a proper apology because it does not go to the essence of his bigotry and his anti-Semitism," he said in a statement on the organization's Web site. "We would hope that Hollywood now would realize the bigot in their midst and that they will distance themselves from this anti-Semite."
This is not the first time Gibson has faced accusations of anti-Semitism. Gibson produced, directed and financed "Passion," which some Jewish leaders said cast Jews as the killers of Jesus.
In a 2004 interview with ABC's Diane Sawyer, Gibson said he was not anti-Semitic.
"To be anti-Semitic is a sin," he said. "It's been condemned by one Papal Council after another. To be anti-Semitic is to be un-Christian, and I'm not."
Days before "Passion" was released, Gibson's father Hutton Gibson was quoted saying the Holocaust was mostly "fiction." The younger Gibson has said that he will not speak against his father.
Gibson, 50, was arrested after deputies stopped his 2006 Lexus LS 430 for speeding at 2:36 a.m. Friday. Sheriff's spokesman Steve Whitmore said deputies clocked him doing 87 mph in a 45 mph zone.
A breath test indicated Gibson's blood-alcohol level was 0.12 percent, Whitmore said. The legal limit in California is 0.08 percent.
Gibson posted $5,000 bail and was released hours later.
In his statement, Gibson also said he has struggled with alcoholism and had taken steps "to ensure my return to health."
He won a best-director Oscar for 1995's "Braveheart." He also starred in the "Lethal Weapon" and "Mad Max" films, "What Women Want" and "The Man Without a Face," among other films.
___
Associated Press writers Gary Gentile, Jeremiah Marquez and Solvej Schou contributed to this report from Los Angeles.
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http://www.thesmokinggun.com/mugshots/melgibsonmug1.html
The man takes a good mug shot.
Mel Gibson's Statement
Mel Gibson's statement, released to the news media early Tuesday, five days after his drunken driving arrest in Malibu:
There is no excuse, nor should there be any tolerance, for anyone who thinks or expresses any kind of anti-Semitic remark. I want to apologize specifically to everyone in the Jewish community for the vitriolic and harmful words that I said to a law enforcement officer the night I was arrested on a DUI charge.
I am a public person, and when I say something, either articulated and thought out, or blurted out in a moment of insanity, my words carry weight in the public arena. As a result, I must assume personal responsibility for my words and apologize directly to those who have been hurt and offended by those words.
The tenets of what I profess to believe necessitate that I exercise charity and tolerance as a way of life. Every human being is God's child, and if I wish to honor my God I have to honor his children. But please know from my heart that I am not an anti-Semite. I am not a bigot. Hatred of any kind goes against my faith.
I'm not just asking for forgiveness. I would like to take it one step further, and meet with leaders in the Jewish community, with whom I can have a one on one discussion to discern the appropriate path for healing.
I have begun an ongoing program of recovery and what I am now realizing is that I cannot do it alone. I am in the process of understanding where those vicious words came from during that drunken display, and I am asking the Jewish community, whom I have personally offended, to help me on my journey through recovery. Again, I am reaching out to the Jewish community for its help. I know there will be many in that community who will want nothing to do with me, and that would be understandable. But I pray that that door is not forever closed.
This is not about a film. Nor is it about artistic license. This is about real life and recognizing the consequences hurtful words can have. Its about existing in harmony in a world that seems to have gone mad.
Quote from: MacGuffin on August 01, 2006, 01:08:56 AM
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(https://xixax.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi35.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fd179%2Fpolkablues%2Fsquiggy.jpg&hash=fc1b92557fdf28ed81e7db7a5cd7ece3e1d4b261)
"Hello, Laverne..."
ABC Cancels Gibson Company's Holocaust Miniseries
Disney-owned ABC said it has canceled a planned miniseries about the Holocaust that it was developing with Mel Gibson's Icon Productions.
In a statement, ABC said, "Given that it has been nearly two years and we have yet to see the first draft of a script, we have decided to no longer pursue this project with Icon."
Spokesman Kevin Brockman wouldn't comment on whether the decision was motivated by Gibson's arrest last week on suspicion of drunken driving or the controversy surrounding the actor.
Disney Studios will be releasing Gibson's latest film, the historical drama "Apocalypto," in Decemeber.
The actor-filmmaker's publicist told The Associated Press that the star is involved in a program to deal with his drinking.
Gibson previously apologized, and admitted saying "despicable" things during his arrest, but made no mention of anti-Semitic remarks.
Jewish groups were initially fuming over Gibson's alleged remarks. Rabbi Marvin Hier of the Simon Wiesenthal Center said, "If that's what he said, even under intoxication, it clearly shows that Mel Gibson has a problem with Jews."
In 2004, Gibson defended himself against accusations of anti-Semitism after some Jewish leaders said "Passion" cast Jews as the killers of Christ.
"To be anti-Semitic is a sin," Gibson, a Catholic, told ABC's Diane Sawyer. "It's been condemned by one Papal Council after another. To be anti-Semitic is to be un-Christian, and I'm not." The anti-Semitic controversy swirling around Gibson two years ago was partly due to a remark his father, Hutton Gibson, had made that the Holocaust was mostly "fiction." The younger Gibson has said that he will not speak against his father.
Should I feel bad for feeling sorry for the guy and for still looking forward to Apocalypto?
If you were watching the subtitle under the Idle Chatter heading, then you know xixax.com is psychic, and we called it:
Martin Riggs Reloads?
Source: Moviehole
There has been a bit of talk about a fifth "Lethal Weapon" movie of late - Dick Donner has been keen to do one for a couple of years apparently - thing is, everyone but Mel Gibson has been involved in those talks. Seems Gibson just wasn't too keen on reprising his role as Martin Riggs for yet another sequel to the 1987 smasheroo, so most of those talks revolved around how they were going to come up with a sequel that would make it appealing for Gibson. Up till now, he wouldn't snap at the line though.
Talking to a fairly sturdy source today, I'm told things may have changed. And yes, it has a lot to do with that little incident of Gibson's in Malibu - I was actually in Malibu today, and it is the talk of the town - and a little to do with the fact that everything he had tied up - including that new ABC mini-series on the Holocaust he was going to do - has suddenly, come undone.
Now the word is, "That Mel might be quickly jumping onboard Lethal 5, or one of the other studio projects that he has been reluctant to do at this stage. It's a sure-fire way of not only staying in good with atleast one studio, but the fans, too".
Interesting stuff. Might we see Mel in a "Lethal Weapon 5", and soon?!
I'm getting too old for this shit.
Schneider Slams Gibson
By WENN
Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo star Rob Schneider is the first actor to publicly announce he will never work with Mel Gibson due to the anti-Semitic remarks he made when he was arrested last Friday.
Schneider took out an ad in Hollywood trade paper Variety slamming the star for his behavior in "An Open Letter to the Hollywood Community."
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It's as if Rob Schneider just wrote down the first thing he thought of and sent it off. That letter isn't particularly funny or provocative or even convincing. It's just stupid, but go figure.
Jesus, poor guy. I think people are taking some drunken slurs he said way too seriously. But I'm also not Jewish, so what do I know?
Anti-Defamation League Welcomes Mel Gibson's Apology To The Jewish Community
The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) today accepted actor Mel Gibson's apology for anti-Semitic remarks he made during an arrest on suspicion of drunken driving.
Abraham H. Foxman, ADL National Director, issued the following statement:
"This is the apology we had sought and requested. We are glad that Mel Gibson has finally owned up to the fact that he made anti-Semitic remarks, and his apology sounds sincere. We welcome his efforts to repair the damage he has caused, to reach out to the Jewish community, and to seek help. Once he completes his rehabilitation for alcohol abuse, we will be ready and willing to help him with his second rehabilitation to combat this disease of prejudice."
The Anti-Defamation League, founded in 1913, is the world's leading organization fighting anti-Semitism through programs and services that counteract hatred, prejudice and bigotry.
Quote from: Gamblour le flambeur on August 03, 2006, 09:42:18 PM
It's as if Rob Schneider just wrote down the first thing he thought of and sent it off. That letter isn't particularly funny or provocative or even convincing. It's just stupid, but go figure.
We are talking about the guy that wrote The Hot Chick and The Animal.
didn't he write something last year to slam a critic for not winning any award and then embarassed himself when the guy won a few awards?
Rob Shneider's a talent-less hack
Quote from: pete on August 04, 2006, 01:49:28 AM
didn't he write something last year to slam a critic for not winning any award and then embarassed himself when the guy won a few awards?
Ebert talks about it in a pretty damn funny review of European Gigolo
http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050811/REVIEWS/50725001/1023
Schneider peaked with those "makin' copies" sketches.
Quote from: MacGuffin on August 03, 2006, 11:39:17 PM
We are talking about the guy that wrote The Hot Chick and The Animal.
But the real question that no one is asking is...Did Mac secretly buy (https://xixax.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fimages.amazon.com%2Fimages%2FP%2FB000CDGVQW.01._SS500_SCLZZZZZZZ_V1137783696_.jpg&hash=f4cf478ef6bcdd9a99fd5a43835c0d18cebb54e0)
on DVD when it came out?
I'm sure it slipped in during one of Mac's Supermarket Sweep sessions.
Quote from: MacGuffin on August 03, 2006, 05:36:37 PM
Schneider Slams Gibson
By WENN
Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo star Rob Schneider is the first actor to publicly announce he will never work with Mel Gibson due to the anti-Semitic remarks he made when he was arrested last Friday.
Schneider took out an ad in Hollywood trade paper Variety slamming the star for his behavior in "An Open Letter to the Hollywood Community."
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hahaha, rob is a corny motha fucka. i think rob had nothing to worry about anyway...gibson does draw the casting line somewhere. but i do like the idea of directors saying shit to piss off shitty actors limiting their roles.
i really want more directors of prominence to get drunk and say some shit that would keep kirsten dunst, alec baldwin, cuba gooding jr, and renee zellweger from making films....
Swayze joins Jodie Foster in defending Gibson
Patrick Swayze became the latest actor to defend Mel Gibson, saying on Monday his friend was not anti-Semitic and that too much had been made of his controversial outburst blaming Jews for starting all wars.
Gibson's widely reported remarks, made to a sheriff's deputy when drunk last month on the Californian Coast, have divided Hollywood, with several film executives criticizing the star and one actor vowing he would never work with him.
But in an interview on British television, Swayze joined actress Jodie Foster in urging people to be more understanding.
"I feel really bad for Mel," Swayze told GMTV. "He's a good guy, we have been in each other's lives for a long time.
"He is not anti-Semitic. People say stupid things when they happen to have a few (drinks), and especially if you don't drink anymore, or have limited your drinking for a long time.
"Everybody else gets to be allowed to have a stupid moment and nobody knows about it or cares the next day," he said. "So it makes it difficult when your life is under the microscope."
Foster has also came out in Gibson's defense.
"Someone told me what had happened, and I said, 'That is just so not true'," she was quoted as saying in the Los Angeles Times on Friday.
"Is he an anti-Semite? Absolutely not," Foster said. "But it's no secret that he has always fought a terrible battle with alcoholism. I just wish I had been there, that I had been able to say, 'Don't do it. Don't take that drink'."
Asked if he thought Gibson's career had effectively been ended by his remarks, Swayze said: "No way, are you kidding me? A man that talented? You don't put somebody down like that, you can try -- they've tried in my world."
Gibson, who holds strong conservative Catholic religious and political views and whose father is a Holocaust denier, has apologized for the outburst and entered a rehabilitation program to treat alcoholism.
Mel Gibson Pleads No Contest in DUI Case
Mel Gibson pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor drunken-driving charge Thursday and was sentenced to three years' probation, the district attorney's office said.
Gibson did not appear but entered the plea through his attorney before Superior Court Judge Lawrence Mira, Deputy District Attorney Gina Satriano said in a statement.
Two counts in the original three-count complaint were dismissed, and Gibson volunteered to do public-service announcements on the hazards of drinking and driving, and to immediately enter rehabilitation, Satriano said.
The arraignment was originally scheduled for Sept. 28 but was moved up at the request of Gibson's attorney.
Gibson was stopped around 2:30 a.m. on July 28 while driving on Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu and made anti-Semitic remarks to the arresting deputy, plunging Gibson into a scandal that forced him to later apologize for what he called "belligerent behavior" and "despicable" remarks.
Gibson was charged with misdemeanor driving under the influence of alcohol, driving while having a 0.08 percent or higher blood-alcohol level, and the infraction of possessing an open container of alcohol while driving.
The first and third counts were dismissed in the deal.
"This was an appropriate outcome which addresses all the public safety concerns of drinking and driving," Satriano said.
The judge ordered Gibson to attend Alcoholics Anonymous meetings five times a week for 4 1/2 months and three AA meetings per week for another 7 1/2 months.
The district attorney's office also said he was ordered to enroll in an alcohol-abuse program for three months, fined a total of $1,300 and had his license restricted for 90 days.
Quote from: MacGuffin on August 17, 2006, 03:08:37 PM
The judge ordered Gibson to attend Alcoholics Anonymous meetings...
That's a pretty fucking ridiculous idea. Shouldn't he be attending Alcoholics We All Know Exactly Who You Are?
GIBSON: Hi. I'm Mel, and I'm an alcoholic.
SOME GUY'S THOUGHTS: Hey, that's Mel Gibson!
GIBSON: I feel like I can trust you guys with all the demons that I need to purge in order to successfully deal with my problem.
SOME GUY THOUGHTS: What's the tabloid magazine's phone number?
Gibson takes redemption tour to 'GMA'
Mel Gibson's redemption tour is heading to TV. The embattled 50-year-old actor-director, whose high-profile drunken-driving arrest and subsequent anti-Semitic tirade made international headlines over the summer, is set to appear on "Good Morning America" next week.
This follows other efforts by Gibson to mend his personal and professional life, including participating in a recovery program, attending court-ordered alcohol-rehabilitation classes and meeting privately with Jewish leaders to understand the source of his "vicious words," as he described them.
These steps will be followed by the Dec. 8 Disney release of Gibson's new film, "Apocalypto."
Gibson spoke with Diane Sawyer somewhere in Southern California recently for a two-part TV interview scheduled to air on Disney-owned ABC's "Good Morning America" on Oct. 12 and 13. This is the first time he has talked to the media since his arrest.
The interview "will be a segment in the show," said ABC news spokeswoman Bridgette Maney. "It's not going to be the entire `Good Morning America'."
As for what to expect during the discussion, Gibson's publicist, Alan Nierob, would only say, "We'll have to wait and see."
Gibson has made few public appearances since his July 28 arrest in Malibu, when he told the arresting officer: "The Jews are responsible for all the wars in the world," and asked him, "Are you a Jew?" He also made sexist comments to a female deputy. Gibson later apologized for what he called "vitriolic and harmful words."
Media outlets have clamored for access to the "Lethal Weapon" actor since his arrest. Maney would not address the significance to the show of the interview or how it was secured. Sawyer interviewed Gibson in 2004 about his controversial movie "The Passion of the Christ."
Gibson quietly stepped back into the public eye late last month. He attended two screenings of his new movie in Oklahoma on Sept. 21 and 22. He arrived at the first wearing a mask and wig. He did not speak to reporters.
The actor-director also appeared at a film festival in Austin, Texas, on Sept. 22 where he showed footage from "Apocalypto." He answered questions from fans, who did not ask about his arrest or recovery.
Disney spokesman Dennis Rice would not offer specifics about Gibson's or the studio's plans to market the movie, which chronicles the decline of the Mayan civilization. The subtitled film features a cast of unknown stars speaking in an ancient Mayan language.
"We look at each movie on its own merits and devise a plan from the ground up," he said. "Hopefully it is the best plan that will maximize the opportunity of each picture, and `Apocalypto' is no different."
Some have criticized Gibson, who issued two apologies for his conduct following his arrest, for not doing more outreach toward the Jewish community — especially in light of his recent promotional appearances.
"You would think that he would also find time to say that he wants to address his terrible statements," Rabbi Marvin Hier, dean of the Simon Wiesenthal Center in Los Angeles, told The Associated Press this week. "His remarks were so anti-Semitic and so hurtful to Jews. You can't make amends for that by talking on the phone to 12 Jews you know from Hollywood."
Nierob said Gibson has met privately with several Jewish leaders, who have been "welcoming and supportive."
Veteran Hollywood publicist David Brokaw said that if Gibson is "really convincing and engaging" during the Sawyer interview, "he could turn it around."
"Mel Gibson, in some form or another, will always be a big star," Brokaw said. "The question is how prophylactic he can or should be about what's happened."
Gibson pleaded no contest to charges of drunken driving on Aug. 17 under a deal in which he'll serve three years' probation, pay a fine and attend alcohol rehabilitation classes. He also volunteered to make a public-service announcement about the hazards of drinking and driving.
He is scheduled to appear in court Jan. 17 for a progress report.
Fresh off 'Apocalypto,' Mel Gibson considers shooting movie in Panama
PANAMA CITY, Panama (AP): Mel Gibson, fresh off his Mexico-based epic "Apocalypto," is thinking of heading south to film a movie in Panama, tourism officials said Monday.
Gibson, accompanied on his visit by his 24-year-old son, Edward, dined Sunday night with tourism spokesman and singer Ruben Blades, who suggested he do a remake of the 1950 film noir "Panic in the Streets," in Panama, the Panama Tourism Bureau said in a news release.
Panamanian filmmaker Jose Severino was quoted in Monday editions of the daily newspaper La Prensa as saying that he was in negotiations with Gibson to produce a movie about Spanish explorer Vasco Nunez de Balboa, the first European to see the Pacific Ocean from its eastern shore.
The tourism bureau said Gibson and Blades spoke of the actor-director's experience directing "Apocalypto," an epic movie about the demise of the Mayan civilization, in the jungles of the Gulf coast state of Veracruz. The movie was released last year.
Members of the crew "became ill from the heat, insects and tropical snakes," the tourism bureau's news release said.
Polish priest wants Mel
Source: The Age
Controversial Polish cleric Father Henryk Jankowski, the former top chaplain of the anti-communist Solidarity trade union, said today he wants Hollywood star Mel Gibson to film his life story.
In an interview published in the right-wing daily Dziennik, 70-year-old Jankowski said Gibson was well-placed to direct his biopic.
Gibson is "a great man and an honest Catholic," Jankowski said.
"He's also a distinguished artist. His (film) Passion was a real masterpiece. We have never met face to face, but the opportunity is coming up," Jankowski added, noting that he planned a meeting with Gibson in September.
The Henryk Jankowski Institute, founded and run by the cleric's colleagues, plans to launch a range of Jankowski T-shirts, cigarette-lighters and other gadgets to help finance a potential film.
Jankowski, who stood shoulder-to-shoulder with the opposition Solidarity movement in the 1980s, has regularly sparked controversy over the past two decades with his violently anti-communist rhetoric and what critics charge are anti-Semitic remarks.
He is also known as a lover of luxury, and for his commercial interests.
Jankowski markets a brand of wine called Monsignore - he is pictured on its label - and is planning to open a chain of bars across Poland.
His views and lifestyle led the archbishop of Gdansk, the northern port which is Jankowski's stamping ground, to fire him in 2004 from his longstanding position as rector of the city's renowned St Brigid's parish.
Gibson, a fundamentalist Catholic, has himself courted controversy.
He stirred heated debate in the United States and abroad because of the alleged anti-Semitism and excessive violence of his 2004 blockbuster, The Passion of the Christ.
His reputation was left in tatters last year following an anti-Semitic tirade launched at a Jewish police policeman when he was arrested for drink driving in Los Angeles.
Gibson later apologised for the outburst.
MEL MOVES TO JUNGLE TO TAME WILD LIFE
Source: The Daily Express
HOLLYWOOD hell-raiser Mel Gibson is about to put his hard-drinking days behind him and head for a quiet life in a tropical paradise.
A year after a drunken outburst almost put an end to his glittering career, the film actor and director will be seeking solitude on a remote ranch in Central America.
The star has sold two of his houses in the United States in what is thought to be preparation for a move to Costa Rica, where he recently bought a £12million 400-acre ranch.
"Mel loves the country and the people and feels he can live there out of the spotlight and away from trouble," a source said. "He's planning to live there for much of the year."
The ranch is well away from temptation, located more than 300 miles from Costa Rica's capital, San Jose.
The country's president, Oscar Arias, has already welcomed Gibson personally. They met in July to discuss a donation the star is offering to help native groups.
Gibson is planning to return later this month to make the final arrangements.
He has visited Costa Rica several times in recent years and last month was pictured enjoying himself in a bar in the town of Nicoya. The visit came while he was scouting locations for his next film, an epic about the Spanish explorer Vasco Nunez De Balboa.
Gibson's move will endear him to a nation that is big on conservation. Costa Rica is famed for the richness and variety of its rainforest and wildlife and is home to five per cent of the world's flora and fauna.
The Central American jungle was the setting for Gibson's Oscar-nominated film Apocalypto, which was released shortly after his infamous run-in with police in Los Angeles last summer.
Gibson, who achieved Hollywood stardom playing a detective in the Lethal Weapon series, is still serving probation following his arrest for drink-driving, during which he unleashed an anti-Semitic tirade and verbally abused a policewoman.
Although the incident – which also saw him ordered to attend Alcoholics Anonymous meetings for a year – has not damaged his reputation as a film-maker, he appears to be distancing himself from the movie capital.
The Braveheart star has sold his home in Malibu, which he bought in 2005, for £15million – pocketing a £3million profit in the process. The six-bedroom house boasts a swimming pool, library, gym and wine cellar and sits on 155ft of Pacific beachfront.
The sale comes just a few months after Gibson sold his 28-room Tudor-style mansion in Connecticut for £20 million.
The move is a further sign that the star is losing interest in keeping up his status as an A-list leading man and is beginning to turn his back on Hollywood.
It is five years since his last appearance as a leading actor in Signs, and he has no projects lined up for the immediate future. The success of The Passion of the Christ, which grossed more than £300million, means Gibson no longer has to rely on Hollywood's big pay cheques, enabling him to focus on his true love, directing.
He financed Apocalypto, an epic about the Mayan civilisation and his last film as director, entirely from his own pocket.
Gibson, who has seven children with his wife of 27 years, Robyn Moore, still owns a California mansion and a ranch in Australia. He also owns Mago, a private island near Fiji, which he bought in 2004 from Japan's Tokyu Corporation for £9million.
Mel Gibson returns for 'Darkness'
Actor back onscreen with 'Edge'
Source: Variety
Mel Gibson has committed to star in "Edge of Darkness," marking his first starring role in a feature film since he headlined "Signs" and "We Were Soldiers" in 2002.
Martin Campbell will direct the feature adaptation of the six-hour 1985 BBC miniseries, which Campbell also helmed.
William Monahan wrote the script, and Graham King is producing through his GK Films banner. Michael Wearing, who produced the original, will also produce, and the BBC will be involved in a producing capacity.
Campbell, who last directed "Casino Royale," developed the project and brought it to King a year ago. He enlisted Monahan for a page one rewrite; the scribe worked with King on "The Departed." King is self-financing the project and is committed to an August production start in Boston. It is unclear whether he will fully finance through production or enlist a studio.
Gibson will play a straitlaced police investigator whose activist daughter is killed. He plunges into the case and uncovers systemic corruption that led to his daughter's death.
Gibson had long been a fan of the mini and was receptive when King and Campbell approached him several months ago.
Before "Signs" and "We Were Soldiers," Gibson starred in 2000's "What Women Want" and "The Patriot." Subsequently, he concentrated on directing, with "The Passion of the Christ" in 2004 and "Apocalypto" in 2006.
While Gibson has stayed under the radar after controversy sparked when he made anti-Semitic comments to a police officer during a DUI arrest in Malibu, he has continued to be offered acting vehicles, and he came close to accepting on several occasions, including "Under and Alone," a fact-based drama still in development at Warner Bros.
At a time when supposedly proven stars aren't translating to opening weekends, films that Gibson starred in and directed have grossed north of $5 billion worldwide.
King and Monahan won Oscars for "The Departed," and the producer recently made a first-look deal with the writer, who has taken residence in GK headquarters. Among the projects on which Monahan and King are collaborating is the Paramount-based true story of Jim Keene, who traded a prison sentence to go undercover at a maximum-security hospital for the criminally insane. King will produce that film with Alexandra Milchan, based on an upcoming Playboy magazine article by Keene and writer Hillel Levin.
DiCaprio set for Gibson's Viking drama
Monahan to pen untitled period drama
Source: Variety
Mel Gibson will direct and Leonardo DiCaprio will star in an untitled period drama about Viking culture. William Monahan is writing the script.
Graham King will produce with Gibson and Tim Headington in a co-production of King's GK Films and Gibson's Icon Prods. Shooting is expected to begin in fall 2010, meaning that if everything falls into place, it would be the next directing effort for Gibson.
There is no distributor at the moment, but Gibson and King often make their films outside the studio system and secure distribution later.
The principals confirmed the project but would not divulge many details. DiCaprio, who has long been fascinated by Viking culture, will play one in a storyline that will be as unsparing as Gibson's other period directing efforts, "Braveheart," "The Passion of the Christ" and "Apocalypto."
The connective tissue is King.
The producer teamed with DiCaprio and Monahan in the Oscar-winning drama "The Departed" and just worked with Gibson and Monahan in the Martin Campbell-directed drama "Edge of Darkness." King also just produced Monahan's directorial debut, "London Boulevard," the Monahan-scripted adaptation of the Ken Bruen novel, with Colin Farrell and Keira Knightley starring.
The Viking film will be DiCaprio's first picture with Gibson.
"This will be an awe-inspiring story, created with some of the industry's finest cinematic talent, and I am just over the moon to be making this film with Mel, Leo and Bill," King said in a statement after the principals confirmed the project to Daily Variety.
Aside from "London Boulevard," King and his GK Films just completed "The Rum Diary" with Johnny Depp and Aaron Eckhart and Emily Blunt starrer "The Young Victoria," latter of which is being released this month by Bob Berney's Apparition.
DiCaprio will likely take a film before putting on the Viking horns. He just completed the Christopher Nolan-directed "Inception" for Warner Bros. and will next be seen in the Martin Scorsese-directed "Shutter Island," which Paramount releases Feb. 19. Gibson just completed the Jodie Foster-directed "The Beaver." Gibson and Monahan are repped by WME, DiCaprio by Rick Yorn and Jennifer Killoran.
I'm a fan of what Mel Gibson tries to do with his movies, but he has yet to fully engage me. Braveheart was his first historical epic and it shows. It has signs of something more, but is mainly a historical romance novel that only differentiates itself with insane battle sequences. I think the combination of a romantic affair done to brutality seemed engaging because it was mixing story elements that weren't common, but the filmmaking is static, the story is typical for its allusions to love and its personal relevance to William Wallace. If there wasn't a brutal decor to Wallace's characterization in the film, he would come off as almost as typical as any other romance novel leading figure. It's just this movie has history to use an an umbrella for the story to make it all seem more interesting and relevant.
The Passion of the Christ was an admirable misfire. The technical accomplishment was mostly there, but Gibson hollowed out Christ's suffering because he believed in a literal translation of a two sentence quote taken from a religious text that insinuated the importance of Christ's death came in his physical anguish. That allowed Gibson to find truth in the images of brutality. He took the guts of the battle scenes from Braveheart and tried to transform them into an aesthetic. Considering better filmmakers have done it with more gore, it's not an impossible feat, but Gibson put his film up to competition with major works like The Gospel According to St. Matthew. Like Gibson's film, that also was a personal interpretation of a religious text, but it was more directed in elevating Christ's spiritual relevance. That allowed for possible resonance with a nonbeliever viewer, but the Passion of the Christ is an Amish take on Christ because it allows a minuscule quote to supercede all other notions and philosophies about Christ. Pasolini was a nonbeliever himself so he patterns the story on events about Christ that draw many different reactions from a viewer, but Gibson is a hermit with what the truth about Christ is. If the audience doesn't believe the significance of what he is doing (meaning they have to be believers too), then he wants them to feel a single thing about what Christ's last days were like. Considering his approach is one that many Christians disagree with, it's a self fulfilling take because Gibson has little interest in a greater spirituality.
Apocalypto is almost complete. There is a basic love story at its core, but Gibson makes better decisions to limit any over embellishment. He learned from Braveheart and Apocalypto is told from a story that does try to understand the characters for their norms, ideologies and customary ugliness in the times. He is even technically better with the filmmaking. It's one thing to say Passion of the Christ was brutally realistic with its photography (so what?) but the main problem is that the cinematography was one note. It all had a dusty direness and the film operated on one note of grizzly effect. The fatalistic tone of the filmmaking is there from step one. It makes a lot of later scenes feel uneventful. The only surprise is how graphic the violence gets, but the look always remains the same. Apocalypto had different tones throughout and it allowed later scenes that involved immense violence to be sincerely startling, but the film lacks because it tries to do too much. Gibson not only wants a personal story of a Native in desperate hunt for his woman, but he always want to paint his story with larger brush marks. Maybe it is common for historical epics to do that, but I wanted a more diligent approach to the realities of the time period. Gibson's graphic filmmaking begged it, but he kept removing us from this reality by going back to scenes that were about the greater world at hand, but my feeling on that could have been singular.
I want to believe that this new project will be another development for Gibson. Over the course of each of his three films, major strides have been made in each one, but I simply return to this quote to fear it will not be.
Quote from: MacGuffin on December 14, 2009, 01:01:25 AM
William Monahan is writing the script.
That really is disappointing. Let's hope Gibson has no stage fright of rewriting scripts.
what would be awesome (and in many instances almost imperative) is that di caprio got fat and bulky for his viking role.
I can't wait to hear the accent Leo tries to pull off for this one.
Quote from: polkablues on December 15, 2009, 04:41:24 AM
I can't wait to hear the accent Leo tries to pull off for this one.
That's a good point because his every attempt at foreign so far has been almost laughable. Matt Damon cleared a hurdle recently when he made a South African accent sound credible (at least in the trailers), but DiCaprio has yet to scale that bar. I hope for the best, but so far DiCaprio has been unable to lose the basics of his elocution in roles.
I thought his australian accent in blood diamond was fine. and i liked the "combining accents" they all did in gangs.
Quote from: Alexandro on December 15, 2009, 10:37:32 AM
I thought his australian accent in blood diamond was fine.
haha... way to go, DiCaprio
This project sounds good because of the cheeky title. Implies that there might be something more than the standard drama. Maybe it could be a darker - action version of Paper Moon or something. And yes, I know he's not directing this, but didn't know where else to put this news.
Mel Gibson Takes A "Summer Vacation"
By Garth Franklin
Source: Dark Horizons
Mel Gibson will next star in the action drama "How I Spent My Summer Vacation" for his Icon Productions reports Variety.
Gibson also penned the script, his third after "The Passion of the Christ" and "Apocalypto", which centers on a career criminal who gets caught by Mexican authorities and is sent to a drug- and crime-filled prison where he learns how to survive with the help of a 9-year-old boy.
Various members of the "Apocalypto" crew will reassemble for the project which begins shooting in March in San Diego and Veracruz, Mexico.
The news comes right after the announcement that Gibson has committed to directing a viking-themed project starring Leonardo DiCaprio.
lol.
Warner Bros. Backing Mel Gibson Movie About Jewish Icon
The actor-director will develop the project based on Judah Maccabee with "Basic Instinct" writer Joe Eszterhas.
Source: THR
Warner Bros. is joining forces with Mel Gibson to develop a movie about the Jewish hero Judah Maccabee, and Basic Instinct screenwriter Joe Eszterhas has come aboard to write the screenplay. Gibson will produce through his Icon Productions and will decide whether he'll act in or direct the film once the script is completed.
Although Gibson was accused of anti-Semitism by a number of Jewish leaders when he released The Passion of the Christ in 2004, he's wanted to tackle a movie about Maccabee for more than a decade. Maccabbee, considered one of the great warriors in Jewish history, led a popular revolt against he Seleucid king Antiochus IV, seizing Jerusalem and reconsecrating the Temple, an event remembered by the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah.
Eszterhas, who hit it big in the '80s with movies like Flashdance, Jagged Edge and Basic Instinct, before retreating from Hollywood in recent years, has been talking with Gibson for about a year and did a lot of his own research on the subject before embarking on a screenplay, according to once source familiar with the project.
There's no timetable in place at the moment, but once Ezterhas, repped by ICM, completes the script, Gibson will decide whether or not to act in the film and whether he'll direct it. Gibson's last film appearance was his star turn in Jodie Foster's The Beaver, which opened in May.
Whether the controversial actor's decision to take on a Jewish hero appeases his critics remains to be seen.
"The story that has always fired my imagination...is the Book of Maccabbees," Gibson told Sean Hannity in a WABC ratio interview in 2004 when he was promoting The Passion. "The Maccabbees family stood up, and they made war, they stuck by their guns, and they came out winning. It's like a Western," he explained.
Certainly, the tale of the Maccabees could lend itself to the kind of harsh realism that Gibson employed in The Passion and Apocalypto. The Maccabees were a fierce group of guerilla warriors who revolted against the Seleucid Empire and its ruler, who had forbidden Jewish religious practices. Some consider the Maccabees to have been zealots; their revolt started with the murder of a Jew who practiced Hellenism. After the Maccabees wrested control of Judea from the Syrean Greeks, they set out to purify the land. After rededicating the Temple --the story of the festival of Hanukkah is born out of the legend that a small jug of oil sustained the Temple's Menorah for a miraculous eight days --the Maccabees ruled with an iron fist. They compelled observance of religious laws, circumcised newborns and killed apostates.
In 2004, though, Gibson's critics objected to his making such a movie. The Anti-Defamation League's Abraham Foxman told the Orlando Sentinel, that if Gibson made that movie, "We'll lose. He'll write his own history. I would prefer to leave the fate of Jewish history and Hollywood to Steven Spielberg. The Maccabees...are our sacred history.
Everything about this screams debacle, and for that reason, I am hugely supportive of it.
Quote from: MacGuffin on September 09, 2011, 02:43:41 PM"The Maccabbees family stood up, and they made war..."
Because they're Jews, right?
Patton Oswalt Tweet:
"First word Mel Gibson says in THE ROAD WARRIOR: "Booby." Last word he says: "Bullet." Whole history of cinema, right there."
Mel Gibson, Joe Eszterhas Spar Over 'Maccabees' Movie
Studio Scraps Script
Screenwriter Joe Eszterhas said in a letter to Mel Gibson that the actor and filmmaker "hates Jews" after Warner Bros. rejected Eszterhas' screenplay for Gibson's movie about Judah Maccabee.
The letter, published on The Wrap.com, accuses Gibson of not really wanting to make the film, and sabotaging it, saying: "I've come to the conclusion that the reason you won't make 'The Maccabees' is the ugliest possible one. You hate Jews."
Eszterhas wrote that Gibson only wanted to make the movie so he could "convert the Jews to Christianity."
Warner Bros. announced Wednesday that it would not go forward with Eszterhas' script and was "analyzing what to do with the project," according to The Wrap.
Gibson wrote a response to Eszterhas, published in the Los Angeles Times, in which he said that Eszterhas' script was delivered late and that the draft was "substandard" and a "significant waste of time."
"Contrary to your assertion that I was only developing "Maccabees" to burnish my tarnished reputation, I have been working on this project for over 10 years and it was publicly announced 8 years ago. I absolutely want to make this movie; it's just that neither Warner Brothers nor I want to make this movie based on your script," Gibson wrote.
Jewish groups criticized Gibson's involvement in a film on the life of Judah Maccabee when he inked a production deal with Warner Bros. Studio for the movie project in September 2011.
Gibson's 2004 film "The Passion of the Christ" angered many in the Jewish community who felt that it played into notions of Jewish culpability for the killing of Jesus. Later he landed in hot water after spewing anti-Semitic invective during a drunken confrontation with a police officer.
Rabbi Marvin Hier, founder and dean of the Simon Wiesenthal Center, told The Wrap Wednesday that he was pleased that the project is stalled. "Jewish history will be better off without Mel Gibson playing Judah Maccabee," he told The Wrap.