Mel Gibson will present an award at Sunday night’s Golden Globes ceremony, organisers at the Hollywood Foreign Press Association have reported.
The star, infamous for his drunken, antisemitic tirade at an LA police officer in 2006, as well as a series of furious recorded rants against an ex-girlfriend, and screenwriter Joe Eszterhas, will appear alongside the ceremony’s host, Ricky Gervais, at the Beverly Hilton hotel in Beverly Hills.
The pair last shared a stage at the 2010 Globes when Gervais, introducing Gibson, said: “I like a drink as much as the next man, unless the next man is Mel Gibson!”
Gervais greeted the news that Gibson will be reappearing at the Globes with glee. “Mel Gibson is presenting an award at the Golden Globes. Thank you Jesus,” he wrote on Twitter.
The comedian, who recently wrapped on his The Office spin-off film Life on the Road, will host the ceremony for the fourth time this weekend, after a successful three-year run by co-hosts Tina Fey and Amy Poehler. His previous appearances, which took place between 2010 and 2012, and saw the ratings of the televised ceremony climb, were notable for Gervais’s bracing material, which made jibes about Scientology, the HFPA top brass and Robert Downey Jr. The Iron Man star, who in 2011 Gervais introduced by referencing the actor’s stint in rehab, was reportedly angry at Gervais for the joke, calling his wisecracks “mean-spirited”. It was later revealed that he was in on the joke.
Gervais, who told the Hollywood Reporter this week he was shocked that anyone found his Globes material shocking, has said that he will avoid jokes that cause “collateral damage”.
“I wasn’t trying to bring anyone down, I wasn’t trying to undermine the moral fabric of America. I was making jokes,” he said of his previous appearances. “I suppose they weren’t used to it being a bit of a tease and a bit of a roast. But I made the decision: do I pander to 200 fragile egos in the room or 200 million people watching at home?”
Meanwhile, Gibson’s appearance will likely be read as another step on the actor and director’s long road to career rehabilitation. He made a directorial comeback with the second world war drama Hacksaw Ridge, which began shooting in Australia last September. That project followed acting roles such as the nefarious gun-for-hire Stonebanks in The Expendables 3 and as a depressed executive who talks through a hand puppet in Jodie Foster’s The Beaver. Foster, alongside Downey and Gary Oldman, has been among the Hollywood stars calling for Gibson’s return.
