Mel Gibson

Gibson was married to Robyn Moore from 1980 until their divorce was finalized in 2011. They had seven children. He later had a daughter with Oksana Grigorieva, with whom he was in a relationship from 2009 to 2010, and a son with writer and director Rosalind Ross, with whom he was in a relationship from 2014 to 2025.

Gibson has discussed a long struggle with alcoholism. He sought professional help in the early 1990s and entered recovery programs after a 2006 arrest for driving under the influence. In 2011, he pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor battery charge and received probation, counseling, and community-service requirements.

Gibson moved with his family from the United States to Australia when he was 12. He studied at the National Institute of Dramatic Art in Sydney, where he performed in productions with Judy Davis and Geoffrey Rush. After graduating in 1977, he worked in Australian theatre and television, including The Sullivans, and made his film debut in Summer City.

His breakthrough came in 1979, when he played Max Rockatansky in George Miller's Mad Max and the title character in Tim. He won the Australian Film Institute Award for Best Actor for Tim, then received the award again for Peter Weir's Gallipoli in 1981. Gibson returned as Max in Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior and Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome, establishing himself as an international action star.

He followed the Mad Max films with roles in The Year of Living Dangerously, The Bounty, and Lethal Weapon. In the Lethal Weapon series, he played Los Angeles detective Martin Riggs opposite Danny Glover's Roger Murtaugh. The original 1987 film was followed by three sequels through 1998.

Gibson expanded beyond action roles during the 1990s, playing Hamlet in Franco Zeffirelli's Hamlet, appearing in the comedy Maverick, and starring in the thrillers Ransom, Conspiracy Theory, and Payback. He also provided the voice of John Smith in Disney's Pocahontas.

In Braveheart (1995), Gibson portrayed Scottish warrior William Wallace while also directing and producing the film. The historical epic won five Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director for Gibson, as well as a Golden Globe for his direction. He later starred in The Patriot, What Women Want, Signs, and We Were Soldiers.

Gibson's public controversies and legal problems affected his Hollywood career in the late 2000s. He returned to starring roles with Edge of Darkness in 2010 and appeared in The Beaver, Get the Gringo, Machete Kills, The Expendables 3, Daddy's Home 2, and Dragged Across Concrete.

Gibson made his feature-directing debut with The Man Without a Face in 1993. In 1989, he had founded Icon Productions with Bruce Davey, and the company produced Hamlet and later projects connected with Gibson's work as a filmmaker.

He directed, produced, co-wrote, and funded The Passion of the Christ (2004), a biblical drama about the final hours and crucifixion of Jesus. The film used Aramaic, Latin, and Hebrew dialogue with subtitles and drew both praise and criticism, particularly over its graphic violence and portrayal of Jewish characters. Gibson followed it with Apocalypto (2006), an action-adventure film set in Mesoamerica whose dialogue is primarily in Yucatec Maya.

After a decade away from feature directing, Gibson directed Hacksaw Ridge (2016), a World War II drama about conscientious objector and army medic Desmond T. Doss, played by Andrew Garfield. The film received six Academy Award nominations and won two. Gibson later directed and produced Flight Risk (2025), starring Mark Wahlberg, and has been attached to the two-part project The Resurrection of the Christ.