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Mel Gibson

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Gibson then proceeded to point at his posterior and said: "This is only for taking a shit." When reminded that he had worked closely with gay people at drama school, Gibson said, "They were good people, kind, I like them. But their thing is not my thing." When the interviewer asked if Gibson was afraid that people would think he is gay because he's an actor, Gibson replied, "Do I sound like a homosexual? Do I talk like them? Do I move like them? What happens is when you're an actor, they stick that label on you." Gibson later defended his comments on Good Morning America, saying, "[Those remarks were a response] to a direct question. If someone wants my opinion, I'll give it. What, am I supposed to lie to them?" In his 1995 Playboy interview, he responded to GLAAD's protests over his comment with "I'll apologize when hell freezes over. They can fuck off".

Eventually, however, Gibson joined GLAAD in hosting 10 lesbian and gay filmmakers for an on-location seminar on the set of the movie Conspiracy Theory in January 1997. In 1999 when asked about the comments to El PaĆ­s, Gibson said, "I shouldn't have said it, but I was tickling a bit of vodka during that interview, and the quote came back to bite me on the ass."

Gibson has been criticized for homophobia over his films Braveheart and The Passion of the Christ.

Allegations of anti-Semitism

Gibson has been accused of anti-Semitism over two issues: His 2004 film The Passion of the Christ sparked a fierce debate over alleged anti-Semitic imagery and overtones. Gibson denied that the film was anti-Semitic, but critics remained divided. Some agreed that the film was consistent with the Gospels and traditional Catholic teachings, while others argued that it reflected a selective reading of the Gospels or that it failed to comply with recommendations for dramatization of the Passion issued by the Committee for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs of the USCCB in 1988.

A leaked, and then later confirmed, report revealed that during Gibson's July 28, 2006, arrest for driving under the influence, he made anti-Semitic remarks to arresting officer James Mee, who is Jewish, saying, "Fucking Jews... Jews are responsible for all the wars in the world. Are you a Jew?" Gibson issued two apologies for the incident through his