Mel Gibson's Hollywood comeback: 'Hacksaw Ridge' restores Mel's lost reputation

American actor and filmmaker Mel Gibson is currently all over the news for his film “Hacksaw Ridge,” which bagged two awards for film editing and sound mixing at the 2017 Academy Awards. Winners for said awards John Gilbert and Kevin O’Connell reportedly thanked the 61-year-old for their win and admitted on stage that it wouldn’t have been possible without him.

However, 10 years down the lane it wasn’t all rosy for the original “Mad Max” actor. The “Braveheart” star, who received two Academy awards for the same movie (Best Director and Best Picture), was caught in a series of controversies leading even to arrest.

In 2006, Malibu police arrested Gibson on charges of drunk driving and for launching an anti-Semitic and sexist rant. The actor was the centre of a controversy yet again in 2010 after an audiotape revealed him of verbally abusing his then-girlfriend Oksana while shouting racial slurs at her, the Daily Mail reports.

Nonetheless, it seems that the public can now forgive and forget the “Lethal Weapon” star’s previous scandalous records after what transpired from Sunday’s Oscars. Gibson was one of the major camera targets at the event, with photographers capturing his reactions as though he were another Hollywood heartthrob.

New Zealand-born director John Gilbert was reported telling the crowd that he enjoyed working with Mel in “Hacksaw Ridge.” He also said that he is looking forward to working with the director in their upcoming film, “The Professor and The Madman” starring Sean Penn.

“Hacksaw Ridge” could be Mel’s comeback after his decade-long exile following the controversies, which also served as the punchline to several of Jimmy Kimmel’s jokes. Kimmel’s audience allegedly seemed unsure of how to respond to the jokes. Some of his Mel Gibson-jokes were even met with an awkward silence, reports the LA Times.

According to reports, the critically acclaimed 2016 movie “Hacksaw Ridge” smashed box-office collections with over US$175 million (AU$228 million) internationally. The movie is a biographical war drama about an American combat medic, Desmond Doss’ experiences in the World War II. Doss, who refused to carry or use a weapon of any kind, was awarded the Medal of Honour for service above and beyond the call of duty during the Battle of Okinawa.

Meanwhile, Gibson was seen doing red carpet interviews with girlfriend Rosalind Ross at the 2017 Academy Awards. The actor is currently in talks with Warner Bros for directing a "Suicide Squad "sequel. Two weeks ago, Gibson announced the birth of his ninth child named Lars.