Mel Gibson is an Australian-American actor, screenwriter, director, producer, and investor with an estimated net worth of $425 million. Going back to the early 1980s, it seemed that this American-born, Australian actor could do anything. Thanks to his good looks, skill, and drive, Mel Gibson quickly became well known both as a theater actor in Australia and as a movie star.
He played major roles in famous films like the “Mad Max” series, the “Lethal Weapon” series, and “The Year of Living Dangerously.” His list of movies also includes “The Bounty,” “Hamlet,” “Bird on a Wire,” “The Patriot,” and “Signs.” Besides acting, he got involved in writing, producing, and directing, and he won an Academy Award for Best Director for his 1995 movie, “Braveheart.” At that point, things were looking bright for him, and he became one of the top names in the industry.
But things started going wrong. It began with problems in his marriage, then issues with alcohol, and then strange outbursts that were recorded several times. At one stage, he got into a public argument with director Joe Eszterhas.
This happened after their private messages were made public on an entertainment website, showing Gibson’s offensive anti-Semitic remarks and Eszterhas’s strong reaction. This situation was made worse by poor movie decisions, which led to his agency cutting ties with him and his removal from several jobs. Even though he has tried to rebuild his career at different times, many fans and people in the industry still see Gibson as a person with a lot of controversy around him.
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Early Life
Mel Gibson, whose full name is Mel Colmcille Gerard Gibson, was born on January 3, 1956, in Peekskill, New York. He is the sixth of eleven children, born to Anne Patricia Reilly and writer Hutton Gibson.
Anne passed away in 1990, and Hutton lived to be 101, passing in 2020. When Mel was 12 years old, his family moved to Australia, where his grandmother was from, because of financial reasons. He went to school run by the Christian Brothers and later studied at the National Institute of Dramatic Art in Sydney. That’s where he started performing on stage before joining the Australian movie scene.
Mel Gibson (Credits: Getty Images)Acting Career
Gibson’s first major roles were in the “Mad Max” movies, which he started right after finishing college in 1977. In 1985, he earned his first $1 million paycheck for acting in “Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome,” the third movie in that series.
Around that same time, Gibson kept acting on stage and worked with the State Theatre Company of South Australia in Adelaide. He performed in well-known plays such as “Waiting for Godot” and “Death of a Salesman.”
In 1984, Mel appeared in his first American film, “The River,” where he played a farmer from Tennessee, acting next to Sissy Spacek. After taking a two-year break from acting, he came back in 1987 as Martin Riggs in the movie “Lethal Weapon.” He then acted in “Tequila Sunrise” in 1988 and “Lethal Weapon 2” in 1989. During the early 1990s, he continued to star in several big action films, including “Maverick,” “Braveheart,” “Ransom,” and “Payback.”
In the early 2000s, Gibson acted in several movies that made more than $100 million each at the box office, such as “The Patriot,” “Chicken Run,” and “What Women Want.” He was also in M. Night Shyamalan’s “Signs,” which turned out to be a huge hit and became the highest-earning movie of his career.
Gibson’s film list also includes lead roles in the rest of the “Mad Max” movies, and other films like “We Were Soldiers,” “Edge of Darkness,” “The Beaver,” and “The Expendables 3.”
Director and Producer
Gibson started producing and directing in 1989 when he created Icon Productions. His first project as a producer was “Hamlet.” He made his first movie as a director in 1993 with “The Man Without a Face.” Two years later, he directed “Braveheart,” which won him an Academy Award for Best Director.
In 2004, Gibson took on the jobs of writer, director, and funder for the bold movie “The Passion of the Christ.” It was a huge hit and became the highest-earning R-rated movie ever, making more than $370 million in the U.S. box office.
In 2016, he directed “Hacksaw Ridge,” which received 14 nominations. These included an Academy Award for Best Achievement in Directing and a Golden Globe for Best Director – Motion Picture.
He won six awards for this movie, including a Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Director and a Hollywood Film Award for Director of the Year. Over the years, Gibson has also worked on directing and producing different television projects.
Mel Gibson (Credits: Getty Images)Earnings from “The Passion of the Christ”
Mel Gibson spent several years trying to get the money needed to make his big project, “The Passion of the Christ.” After facing many problems, he decided to use $30 million of his own money to make the film. He then spent another $15 million on promoting it, which brought his total spending to $45 million.
Gibson kept 50% of the money the film made, while the other half went to the company that helped release it, Newmarket Films. When all the earnings were counted, Mel’s share came out to be a large $300 million.
On top of that, “The Passion of the Christ” was very successful in product sales, which brought him another $50 to $100 million. DVD sales, which were at their highest around 2004, gave him an extra $75 million.
Altogether, Mel Gibson is believed to have made between $400 million and $475 million from “The Passion of the Christ.”
In January 2023, it was shared that filming for the next part, “The Passion of the Christ: Resurrection,” would begin later that year.
Real Estate
Over the years, Mel Gibson has bought many impressive homes and properties. He has owned large estates in places like Malibu, Los Angeles, Costa Rica, Fiji, and different parts of Australia.
Greenwich, Connecticut:
In 1994, Mel Gibson bought Old Mill Farm, a large property with more than 75 acres in Greenwich, Connecticut, for $9 million. He later sold this estate in July 2007 for $40 million. A video tour of Old Mill Farm is available to watch.
Malibu:
In 2008, Mel Gibson bought a 5.5-acre home in Malibu for $11.5 million from David Duchovny and Tea Leoni, who were married at the time. At one point, he put the home up for sale for $17.5 million, and again in March 2019 for $14.5 million.
But in July 2019, he took it off the market and has kept the property ever since. Sadly, the Malibu estate was destroyed in the 2025 Palisades Fire. The former home was 5,403 square feet in size and had six bedrooms and six bathrooms. It included a large chessboard on the grass, organic gardens, fruit trees, tall shade trees, shaded patios, a tennis court, and a swimming pool. A video tour of this estate is available to view.
Costa Rica:
In April 2007, Gibson bought a 400-acre ranch in Costa Rica for $26 million. He has tried to sell the property several times, with asking prices going up to $35 million. There is a video tour of this estate, which is called Playa Barrigona.
In December 2004, Mel Gibson sold a property in Australia for $6 million. Soon after, he bought a private island in Fiji named Mago Island for $15 million.
Mel Gibson (Credits: Getty Images)Personal Life
Gibson got married to Robin Moore in 1980, and together they had seven children before getting divorced in 2011. After that, he started a relationship with Oksana Grigorieva, a musician from Russia.
They had a daughter together. Later, Oksana accused Mel of domestic violence. In August 2011, they reached an agreement where she received $750,000, shared legal custody of their daughter, and a home in Sherman Oaks, California, which she could live in until their daughter Lucia turned 18.
In 2014, Gibson began a relationship with Rosalind Ross, a former champion in equestrian vaulting and a writer. They had a son named Lars Gerard in January 2017. He is Gibson’s ninth child.
Divorce Settlement
When Mel divorced Robin Gibson, he reportedly agreed to pay $400 million. At the time, this was considered the biggest celebrity divorce settlement ever.
Controversies and Legal Issues
In 2010, Oksana Grigorieva asked the court for a restraining order to stop Mel Gibson from seeing their daughter. In reply, Gibson also filed a restraining order against her. Oksana said he had hurt her, which led to an investigation by the Los Angeles County police.
A major event happened in July 2010 when an audio clip was shared online. It included violent and racist comments made by Gibson during a phone call with Grigorieva. After this, Gibson pleaded no contest to a charge of misdemeanor battery. He settled the case with Grigorieva, giving her $750,000 and the house in Sherman Oaks, California.
Mel Gibson and Rosalind Ross (Credits: Getty Images)Gibson has been part of several situations where he made anti-Semitic remarks and shared anti-LGBTQ opinions. Because of these statements, many producers, directors, agencies, and fellow actors in Hollywood stopped working with him for nearly ten years. It wasn’t until the movie “Hacksaw Ridge” came out that he started to be accepted again by people in the Hollywood community.
Gibson has talked openly in different interviews about his problems with alcohol and his path toward getting better. In 1984, he was caught driving drunk in Toronto, which led to a three-month driving ban in Canada.
On July 28, 2006, he was arrested for driving under the influence while speeding and having an open bottle of alcohol in his car. He pled no contest to the charges and was given three years of probation.
Who is Mel Gibson’s girlfriend?
Mel Gibson’s girlfriend is Rosalind Ross, a 34-year-old woman from Aptos, California. Since Gibson is 69, and more than twice her age, the 34-year difference between them has been talked about.
“Regarding age and relationships, it’s just a number. She is an adult, and we dig each other,” Gibson told The Mirror in 2016. “It might cause a problem and one has a trepidation about these things, but it’s working out great. She is a really special person. I dig her. So there you go. That’s it. What more can one ask?”
Philanthropy
Gibson has given millions of dollars to Healing the Children, a group that helps provide important medical care to children in need around the world. During a business visit to Singapore in 2007, he gave large donations to a local charity that helps children with serious illnesses. He has supported the arts too, including helping with the restoration of Renaissance artworks.
He has also donated a large amount to the National Institute of Drug Abuse. He gave $500,000 to the El Mirador Basin project, which works to protect the untouched rainforest in Central America. In July 2007, he visited Central America to meet with the president of Costa Rica and show support for native communities. That same year, he helped fund Green Rubber Global to open a tire recycling center in Gallup, New Mexico.
Mel Gibson (Credits: Getty Images)Accolades
Mel Gibson has won seven Academy Awards in total—five of them for “Braveheart” and two for “Hacksaw Ridge.” He won a Golden Globe for best director for “Braveheart” and has been nominated for a BAFTA and several other awards.
Mel Gibson’s path from being a fast-rising Hollywood actor to becoming a well-known director and someone who gives back shows his great talent and strength. Even with personal problems and public criticism, he has built a long and successful career.
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His net worth of $425 million shows his achievements in entertainment and smart financial decisions.
From his well-known parts in “Lethal Weapon” and “Braveheart” to his directing achievements with “Hacksaw Ridge” and “The Passion of the Christ,” Gibson’s impact is clear. His strong commitment to both his work and giving back has earned him a lasting place in Hollywood history.