• The iconic actor/director rose to fame as the star of action films such as Mad Max and Lethal Weapon. He won the Oscar for Best Director in 1995 for the historical biopic Braveheart, which also took that year's award for Best Picture.

  Gibson confirmed on The Tonight Show in late May of 2009 that his girlfriend Oksana Grigorieva is pregnant with his child.TMZ: Yep, She's Knocked Up (Maya 26, 2009) He also took the blame for his marriage to Robyn Moore ending, stating "I did a pretty good hatchet job on my marriage myself. I'm to blame."People: 'I Guess I'm Octo-Mel!' (May 25, 2009)

• Fast Facts

  1. Full name: Mel Columcille Gerard Gibson
  2. Born: January 3, 1956
  3. Birthplace: Peekskill, New York
  4. Moved to Australia at age 12
  5. Sixth of eleven children
  6. Brother Donal Gibson is an actor
  7. Has dual Irish and American citizenships
  8. Religion: Traditionalist Catholic
  9. Attended: National Institute of Dramatic Art
  10. 1977: Film debut: Summer City
  11. July 28, 2006: Arrested for DUI near his Malibu, California home
  12. Ex-spouse: Robyn Moore, married in 1980
  13. Has seven children
  14. Dating Russian pianist Oksana Grigorieva
  15. Grigorieva is pregnant with Gibson's child

• Divorce

  Robyn Gibson filed for a divorce from her husband in April of 2009 citing irreconcilable differences. The couple married in 1980 and have seven children together, of which one, Tom, is a minor. She is seeking joint physical and legal custody of Tom. The couple were said to have had no prenuptial agreement in place and Robyn should therefore be granted half of the couple's community property.TMZ: Mel Gibson's Wife Files for Divorce (April 13, 2009)

• Acting Career

  After graduating Syndey, Australia's National Institute of Dramatic Art in 1977, Gibson landed a few roles on some Australian TV series. Early collaborations with Aussie directors George Miller (the Mad Max films) and Peter Weir (Gallipoli, The Year of Living Dangerously) made him an international film star by the early '1980s. Though many of his high-profile appearances were in action films, including the smash hit Lethal Weapon series, Gibson has worked in a variety of genres, even playing Hamlet inFranco Zeffirelli's 1990 adaptation of Shakespeare's play. As his directorial career has taken off, he has started acting less. His last starring role was in M. Night Shyamalan's 2002 extraterrestrial thriller Signs.

• Director

  Gibson's directorial debut was the 1993 drama The Man Without a Face, in which he also starred. He followed this up with Braveheart, the epic war film that eventually took two Oscars. His third and most successful film was Passion of the Christ, which became the eighth highest-grossing film in history with a worldwide gross of $611,899,420. His most recent film was the Mayan adventure epic Apocalypto.

• Accusations of Anti-Semitism

  Many argued that the depiction of Jewish characters in The Passion of the Christ was offensive, implying that future generations of Jews would be cursed for their ancestors role in Jesus' death. Gibson responded that the film was designed to upset people and inspire conversation.

  Gibson's father, writer Hutton Gibson, has also sparked anger over statements implying that the death toll from the Nazi Holocaust has been overstated and that many Jews included in victim counts simply left Europe of their own volition.

  During a July 28, 2006 arrest for driving under the influence, Gibson told the arresting police officer "Jews are responsible for all the wars in the world," along with a variety of other potentially offensive comments. Gibson has since apologized and entered a treatment program for alcohol abuse.

• Related Mahalo Pages

  Braveheart | The Passion of the Christ | Lethal Weapon | James Caviezel | Bruce Willis | Harrison Ford | Tom Hanks | Danny Glover | Joe Pesci | Chris Rock | Joaquin Phoenix | Abigail Breslin | Helen Hunt | Heath Ledger | Jodie Foster | Use of Racial Slurs | Apocalypto | What Women Want | Forever Young | Maverick Movie | Rod Lurie | Liev Schreiber | Scott Glenn | Oksana Kolesnikova | Terri Seymour | Liza Marquez | Oksana Grigorieva

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