A Very Angry Guy Deep Down: Director Recalls Nervousness Working With Mel Gibson On $215M War Movie

Summary

  • Roland Emmerich initially nervous working with Mel Gibson on
    The Patriot
    .
  • Heath Ledger helped bridge the gap between Emmerich and Gibson.
  • Gibson’s career remains controversial due to a number of problematic comments.



At San Diego Comic-Con, Roland Emmerich explains his initial nervousness upon working with Mel Gibson on The Patriot. Emmerich was the director of the film, which starred Gibson as Benjamin Martin, a farmer who becomes a part of the Colonial Militia during the American Revolution. In addition to Gibson, The Patriot featured a leading cast including Heath Ledger, Joely Richardson, Jason Isaacs, Chris Cooper, Tcheky Karyo, Rene Aubjerjonois, Lisa Brenner, Tom Wilkinson, Donal Logue, and Leon Rippy.

Speaking with Collider at SDCC, Emmerich explains his initial hesitation about working with Gibson. The director described Gibson as “a very angry guy deep down” making Emmerich “really, really nervous to shoot The Patriot.” Emmerich also worried about crossing Gibson when Emmerich preferred Ledger in the lead role rather than another actor, who many people wanted for the role. Gibson eventually came around to Ledger, noting that Emmerich was “right because this guy will be a major star.” Check out the full quote from Emmerich below:


[Mel Gibson was] a very angry guy deep down. So I was really, really nervous to shoot The Patriot because I said, “Oh, Mel Gibson is an Oscar-nominated actor.” The first problem I had was that I wanted Heath Ledger instead of another actor. I naturally had to call [Mel] and say, “I kind of like the other guy.” Then he said, “Well, you’re the director.” And hangs up on me. True story. I said, “Okay.” And Heath said yes. This was a yes for me. [Laughs] Only my sister was with me, and everybody else wanted to have the other guy. After three days, he actually told me, “You were right because this guy will be a major star.”


Mel Gibson Has Been A Controversial Figure


The fact that Ledger helped bridge the gap between Emmerich and Gibson is a particularly interesting aspect of this story. Before his tragic death in 2008, Ledger had a prolific career in film but was just starting to heat up by the time The Patriot rolled around in 2000. He had already been in the teen rom-com 10 Things I Hate About You, but it was The Patriot that helped to launch Ledger’s dramatic film career. Following the Emmerich film, Ledger went on to be nominated for Academy Awards for Brokeback Mountain and The Dark Knight.

The quote is also interesting when looking back on Gibson’s career. Even at the time, Emmerich recognized that Gibson was an “angry guy,” implying some level of the actor being difficult to work with. Now, Gibson has gotten even more controversial, as the actor has been known to make commentary that has been regarded as anti-Semitic, racist, and homophobic. As such, this idea that Gibson is an “angry guy” could be read with far more problematic implications in the present moment.


Despite this controversy, Gibson has managed to maintain a career throughout the years. In 2017, he directed the Oscar-nominated film Hacksaw Ridge, whose accolades included a Best Director nod for Gibson himself. He also starred in the John Wick spinoff series The Continental, playing Cormac O’Connor. This year, Gibson’s creative career will also continue through directing the thriller Flight Risk. Overall, Gibson remains a difficult figure over two decades after The Patriot, albeit for an additional set of reasons.

Source: Collider