Skip To Content
JEWISH. INDEPENDENT. NONPROFIT.
Make a matched gift and support Jewish journalism. DONATE NOW
The Schmooze

Gary Oldman Bashes ‘Hypocrites’ Who Shun Mel Gibson

Mel Gibson has finally found someone willing to stand up for him.

In an interview with Playboy magazine promoting his role in “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes,” actor Gary Oldman donned his defender-of-pariah-celebrities cape, labeling the climate of political correctness in Hollywood as “crap.”

I don’t know about Mel. He got drunk and said a few things, but we’ve all said those things,” the 56-year-old actor said. “We’re all f—–g hypocrites. That’s what I think about it. The policeman who arrested him has never used the word n—-r or that fucking J–? I’m being brutally honest here. It’s the hypocrisy of it that drives me crazy.”

Oldman also had a kind word for Alec Baldwin, who recently made headlines when he made a homophobic slur to a paparazzo who was trying to take his picture.

“Alec (Baldwin) calling someone an F– in the street while he’s pissed off coming out of his building because they won’t leave him alone. I don’t blame him.”

It’s been almost eight years since Mel Gibson’s anti-Semitic tirade during his arrest on a DUI charge.

“So they persecute. Mel Gibson is in a town that’s run by Jews and he said the wrong thing because he’s actually bitten the hand that I guess has fed him-and doesn’t need to feed him anymore because he’s got enough dough.

“He’s like an outcast, a leper, you know? But some Jewish guy in his office somewhere hasn’t turned and said, “That f—- kraut” or “F— those Germans,” whatever it is? We all hide and try to be so politically correct. That’s what gets me. It’s just the sheer hypocrisy of everyone, that we all stand on this thing going, ‘Isn’t that shocking?’

The New York Daily News points out that at this point, the self-described Libertarian seemed to realize that his words could be seen as offensive.

You have to edit and cut half of what I’ve said, because it’s going to make me sound like a bigot,” Oldman told his interviewer, reportedly told his interviewer.

This is a moment of great uncertainty. Here’s what you can do about it.

We hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, we’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s independent Jewish news. All donations are still being matched by the Forward Board - up to $100,000 until April 24.

This is a moment of great uncertainty for the news media, for the Jewish people, and for our sacred democracy. It is a time of confusion and declining trust in public institutions. An era in which we need humans to report facts, conduct investigations that hold power to account, tell stories that matter and share honest discourse on all that divides us.

With no paywall or subscriptions, the Forward is entirely supported by readers like you. Every dollar you give is invested in the future of the Forward — and telling the American Jewish story fully and fairly.

The Forward doesn’t rely on funding from institutions like governments or your local Jewish federation. There are thousands of readers like you who give us $18 or $36 or $100 each month or year.

Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.

Republish This Story

Please read before republishing

We’re happy to make this story available to republish for free, unless it originated with JTA, Haaretz or another publication (as indicated on the article) and as long as you follow our guidelines.
You must comply with the following:

  • Credit the Forward
  • Retain our pixel
  • Preserve our canonical link in Google search
  • Add a noindex tag in Google search

See our full guidelines for more information, and this guide for detail about canonical URLs.

To republish, copy the HTML by clicking on the yellow button to the right; it includes our tracking pixel, all paragraph styles and hyperlinks, the author byline and credit to the Forward. It does not include images; to avoid copyright violations, you must add them manually, following our guidelines. Please email us at [email protected], subject line “republish,” with any questions or to let us know what stories you’re picking up.

We don't support Internet Explorer

Please use Chrome, Safari, Firefox, or Edge to view this site.