Mel Gibson Last Movie Could Be Viking Film

By: Andy Hodges
03/16/2010 10:10 AM ET

Mel Gibson hinted that his next movie just might be his final. The Oscar-winning actor has directed four movies that include “The Man Without a Face,” “Braveheart,” “The Passion of the Christ” and “Apocalypto.” The next film project is called “Viking” and it was the first movie he ever thought about directing.

“It was the first movie I ever thought about making… I saw it in my mind back when I was teenager. Seriously, it’s the first movie I wanted to make. And I think it will be the last film I direct. It’s the thing I have been going toward, in a way, since I was young, and I think when it’s done I may be finished,%u201D Mel Gibson said in a statement.

Gibson does sound like he’ll finish with movies completely. However, he’s not talking about his acting career, which could only mean no retirement. Some people speculate that he could do other projects that don’t involve directing.

It’s been a long career for Mel Gibson. The Viking adventure epic will include Leonardo DiCaprio with the lead role. Gibson and DiCaprio had a five-hour meeting to discuss the project.

Lethal Weapon to Braveheart

After appearing in the Mad Max and Lethal Weapon series, Mel Gibson went on to direct and star in the Academy Award-winning Braveheart. Gibson’s direction of Braveheart made him the sixth actor-turned-filmmaker to receive an Academy Award for Best Director. In 2004, he directed and produced The Passion of the Christ, a controversial but successful film that portrayed the final hours of the life of Jesus Christ.

The 1990s Career

During the 1990s, Gibson used his boxoffice power to alternate 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.”

Movie Set Prankster

Mel Gibson is known for his sense of humor on the set of his movies. He has a reputation for practical jokes, puns, silly comedy, and doing outrageous things to shock people. Gibson is fond of drawing caricatures and hiring high school marching bands to pay tribute to his co-workers.

As a director he sometimes breaks the tension on set by having his actors perform serious scenes wearing a red clown nose. Helena Bonham Carter, who appeared alongside him in Hamlet, said of him, “He has a very basic sense of humor. It’s a bit lavatorial and not very sophisticated.” On the set of Maverick Gibson played a joke on co-star Jodie Foster’s birthday by secretly rewriting the script to give her character all corny dialogue.

Foster returned the favor by hiring a bagpiper in full Scottish regalia to follow Mel Gibson around at the Vanity Fair Oscar party after he won for Braveheart. On the set of Ransom, Gibson presented Ron Howard and Brian Grazer with a mock Braveheart For Your Consideration ad when both Braveheart and Apollo 13 were nominated for Best Picture. The ad was for %u201CBest Moon Shot,%u201D and featured a picture of Braveheart’s Scottish army mooning the English.

Driving Under The Influence

On July 28, 2006, Mel Gibson was arrested for Driving Under The Influence (DUI). A leaked police report revealed that during the arrest, he made anti-Semitic remarks to the arresting officers. “F****** Jews… Jews are responsible for all the wars in the world. Are you a Jew?”