Mel Gibson

This article is about the actor. For the basketball player and coach, see Mel Gibson (basketball).

Mel Gibson
AO
Gibson in 2016
Born
Mel Columcille Gerard Gibson

(1956-01-03) January 3, 1956 (age 68)
Peekskill, New York, U.S.
Citizenship
EducationNational Institute of Dramatic Art (BFA)
Occupations
  • Actor
  • film director
  • producer
  • screenwriter
Years active1976–present
WorksFull list
Spouse
Robyn Moore
​
​
(m. 1980; div. 2011)​
Partner(s)Oksana Grigorieva (2009–2010)
Rosalind Ross (2014–present)
Children9, including Milo
FatherHutton Gibson
RelativesDonal Gibson (brother)
Eva Mylott (grandmother)
AwardsFull list

Mel Columcille Gerard Gibson[3] AO (born January 3, 1956[4]) is an American actor and filmmaker. The recipient of multiple accolades, he is known for his action hero roles, particularly his breakout role as Max Rockatansky in the first three films of the post-apocalyptic action series Mad Max and as Martin Riggs in the buddy cop action-comedy film 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, which independent film director Atom Egoyan has called "an alternative to the studio system".[5] Director Peter Weir cast him as one of the leads in the World War I drama Gallipoli (1981), which earned Gibson a Best Actor Award from the Australian Film Institute.[6] In 1985, Gibson was named as People magazine's first Sexiest Man Alive.[7]

In 1995, Gibson produced, directed, and starred in Braveheart, a historical epic, 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 his directorial work of the action-adventure film Apocalypto (2006), which is set in Mesoamerica during the early 16th century.

After several legal issues and controversial statements leaked to the public, Gibson's popularity in Hollywood declined, affecting his careers in acting and directing.[8] His career began seeing a resurgence with his performance in Edge of Darkness (2010) and Jodie Foster's The Beaver (2011). His directorial comeback after an absence of 10 years, Hacksaw Ridge (2016), won two Academy Awards,[9][10] and was nominated for another four including Best Picture and Best Director for Gibson, his second nomination in the category.

  1. ^ "American star Mel Gibson is an Irish citizen and says Ireland 'feels like home'". ireland-calling.com. August 16, 2020.
  2. ^ Lonergan, Aidan. "11 celebrities you never realised had an Irish passport". The Irish Post.
  3. ^ McDannell, Colleen (2008). Catholics in the Movies. Oxford University Press, USA. ISBN 978-0-19-530656-9.
  4. ^ "UPI Almanac for Thursday, Jan. 3, 2019". United Press International. January 3, 2019. Archived from the original on January 3, 2019. Retrieved September 3, 2019. actor/director Mel Gibson in 1956 (age 63)
  5. ^ Brian D. Johnson (December 25, 2006). "Mad Mel's passion for vengeance". Maclean's.
  6. ^ The Australian Film Institute,Past Winners Archived July 23, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
  7. ^ "This is every 'Sexiest Man Alive' winner since 1985". November 7, 2022.
  8. ^ Grady, Constance (July 24, 2018). "Mel Gibson has set the blueprint for a #MeToo comeback. Expect other men to follow it". Vox. Retrieved July 24, 2018.
  9. ^ "'Hacksaw Ridge' wins 2 Oscar awards, honoring local Desmond Doss". February 28, 2017. Archived from the original on March 1, 2017. Retrieved February 28, 2017.
  10. ^ "OSCAR WINNERS 2017: SEE THE COMPLETE LIST!". February 27, 2017. Retrieved July 9, 2017.