Andrew Garfield defends Mel Gibson: 'A path of healing'
The actor who played Spider-Man met on set with the disgraced Mel Gibson a few years ago. In a recent interview, Garfield defended the star returning to the film industry after several scandals.
In a conversation with People magazine, Andrew Garfield expressed his opinion on Mel Gibson, the controversial figure he undoubtedly is. The actor, known for films such as "The Amazing Spider-Man," starred alongside Gibson in the war drama Hacksaw Ridge (2016), which earned him an Oscar nomination for Best Actor. Gibson himself received a nomination for directing.
In the interview, Garfield shared his experiences working with Gibson, whose career was severely damaged after accusations of anti-Semitism. "I learned that people can change, that people can get help. I learned that everyone deserves respect. And that people deserve second chances, third chances, fourth chances. That none of us are infallible," Garfield said.
The actor also mentioned that Gibson has gone through many difficult stages in his life, emphasising that he is full of empathy and a master of visual storytelling: "He's done a lot of beautiful healing with himself. And thank God. Because he's an amazing filmmaker, and I think he deserves to make films. He deserves to tell stories, because he has a very, very big, compassionate heart," the star added.
The fall of Mel Gibson
Mel Gibson had several moments of breakdown. The first wave of criticism hit him following his arrest for drunk driving in 2006 when he made remarks targeting the Jewish community. After the incident, Gibson issued a public apology, saying, "There is no excuse, nor should there be any tolerance, for anyone who thinks or expresses any kind of anti-Semitic remark."
At that time, Gibson was also in the headlines due to violent behaviour in a relationship. Gibson, a staunch Catholic and father of seven, left his family after 28 years of marriage and got involved with the much younger Oksana Grigorieva. Interestingly, the actor's new relationship ended even before his divorce in 2011. Gibson and the Russian pianist and singer became parents, but their happiness didn't last long. When Grigorieva revealed recordings in which the star threatened to kill her, a storm erupted in the media.
Although the actor continued to appear in films after the scandals, his involvement in major Hollywood productions was significantly reduced. It reached a point where the actors of "The Hangover Part II" threatened to strike if Gibson were to appear on set, and Leonardo DiCaprio declined to engage in a project with Gibson behind the camera.
The attitude of the American community towards Mel Gibson was best illustrated by the statement of an anonymous producer who bluntly said, "There's nothing to do for Mel Gibson at the moment. No one will touch him with a 10-foot pole," Gibson only recently returned to directing with the thriller Flight Risk, which is scheduled for release on January 24, 2025.
Meanwhile, Garfield is currently starring alongside Florence Pugh in the romantic drama We Live in Time.
