Los
Angeles
(Reuters):
A
top
film
industry
agent
asked
his
colleagues
to
boycott
working
with
Mel
Gibson
as
Hollywood
debated
whether
the
Lethal
Weapon
superstar's
career
will
suffer
from
anti-Semitic
remarks
he
reportedly
made
when
arrested
for
suspected
drunk
driving.
But
his
comments
surprised
few
in
Hollywood,
which
two
years
ago
wondered
whether
Gibson
''would
ever
eat
lunch
in
this
town
again''
for
making
The
Passion
of
the
Christ,
a
film
that
triggered
debate
over
whether
it
was
anti-Jewish
before
it
opened.
Once
in
theaters,
Passion
became
a
runaway
hit
and
Gibson
was
back
at
the
top
of
Hollywood
filmmakers.
The
Los
Angeles
County
Sheriff's
Department
said
yesterday
it
sent
its
full
file
on
Gibson's
arrest
to
the
District
Attorney
to
decide
if
the
50-year-old
actor
should
be
charged
with
drunk
driving.
At
the
same
time,
the
department
denied
allegations
it
covered
up
Gibson's
remarks,
which
were
revealed
by
the
celebrity
Web
site
TMZ.com.
Gibson,
whose
personal
views
are
far
to
the
right
of
traditional
liberal
Hollywood,
was
arrested
on
suspicion
of
drunk
driving
early
on
Friday
and
was
reported
to
have
launched
into
a
tirade
against
Jews,
asking
the
arresting
officer
if
he
was
a
Jew
and
blaming
the
Jews
for
starting
all
wars.
The
actor,
who
holds
strong
conservative
Catholic
religious
and
political
views
and
whose
father
is
a
Holocaust
denier,
apologised
on
Saturday,
saying,
''I
acted
like
a
person
completely
out
of
control
when
I
was
arrested,
and
said
things
that
I
do
not
believe
to
be
true
and
which
are
despicable.
I
am
deeply
ashamed
of
everything
said.''
He
added
he
had
battled
alcoholism
''for
all
of
my
life''
and
was
taking
action
to
prevent
another
relapse.
A
spokesman
for
Gibson,
who
won
an
Oscar
for
directing
Braveheart,
said
the
actor
had
entered
''an
ongoing
program
of
recovery,''
but
declined
to
give
specifics.
Meanwhile,
top
film
industry
agent
Ari
Emanuel
issued
a
statement
on
HuffingtonPost.com
in
which
he
called
on
Hollywood
to
stop
working
with
Gibson.
''At
a
time
of
escalating
tensions
in
the
world,
the
entertainment
industry
cannot
idly
stand
by
and
allow
Mel
Gibson
to
get
away
with
such
tragically
inflammatory
statements,''
he
said,
adding:
''People
in
the
entertainment
community,
whether
Jew
or
Gentile,
need
to
demonstrate
that
they
understand
how
much
is
at
stake
in
this
by
professionally
shunning
Mel
Gibson
and
refusing
to
work
with
him,
even
if
it
means
a
sacrifice
to
their
bottom
line.''
Rabbi
Marvin
Heir,
dean
and
founder
of
the
Simon
Wiesenthal
Center,
a
Jewish
human
rights
group,
called
on
ABC
to
reconsider
its
plans
to
air
a
mini-series
being
made
by
Gibson
about
a
pair
of
lovers
trapped
in
the
Holocaust.
''If
I
were
ABC
I
would
not
have
Mel
Gibson
do
a
film
about
the
Holocaust.
It
would
be
embarrassing,''
Heir
said.
An
ABC
spokeswoman
said
the
project
was
at
such
an
early
stage
that
the
studio
has
not
even
received
a
first
script.
Many
in
Hollywood
debated
whether
the
incident
would
indeed
have
an
ill
effect
on
Gibson's
career,
with
some
saying
that
they
doubted
it
would
because
the
actor
was
a
money
maker
for
the
studios.
''The
rule
is
forgive
and
forget
when
you
can
bring
in
a
film
that
makes
100
million
dollars,''
one
movie
insider
said.
Film
historian
David
Thomson
said
Gibson
has
''been
stepping
over
the
line
for
several
years.
But
the
key
thing
is
that
he
makes
money
for
people
and
he
will
not
only
continue
to
eat
lunch
in
this
town
but
he
will
buy
lunch.''