Mel Gibson breaks silence on domestic violence scandal

Mel Gibson has broken his silence on his damaging domestic violence scandal, calling the leak of angry personal phone calls with his then-girlfriend last year a �personal betrayal.�

The Oscar-winning director of �Braveheart� described the leaked tapes, in which Gibson was heard ranting, swearing and threatening Russian girlfriend Oksana Grigorieva, �terribly humiliating and painful for my family.�

Gibson (picture) added that he did not care if he ever acted again.






�I�ve never treated anyone badly or in a discriminatory way based on their gender, race, religion or sexuality � period,� Gibson told Hollywood journalist Allison Hope Weiner in a lengthy interview for website Deadline Hollywood yesterday.

Gibson last month pleaded no contest to a charge of hitting Grigorieva, the mother of his baby daughter, as their relationship broke down in early 2010.

He was sentenced to three years� probation, a year of counselling and community service.

In his first public comments on the saga, Gibson said the tapes of phone calls leaked a year ago were edited, adding; �It�s one terribly, awful moment in time, said to one person, in the span of one day and doesn�t represent what I truly believe or how I�ve treated people my entire life.�

�Who anticipates being recorded? ... Who could anticipate such a personal betrayal?� Gibson said.

Gibson�s long-time manager left him, his movie �The Beaver� was delayed for months, and actors on the sequel to comedy �Hangover 2� refused to work with him because of the fall-out of the sexist and racist remarks on the tapes.

They were leaked to the media as Gibson was trying to make an acting comeback after making vicious anti-Semitic remarks during a 2006 drunken driving arrest, and the end of his 28-year marriage.

The delayed movie �The Beaver�, in which Gibson plays a depressed husband who communicates through a beaver hand puppet, is now to be released in the United States on May 6.

But Gibson seemed unconcerned by what movie-goers would think of him as an actor now.

�I don�t care if I don�t act anymore,� he said. �I could easily not act again. It�s not a problem. I�m going to do something now because I want to do it and because it�s fun.�

Gibson said he was working on a �total bodice-ripping swashbuckling� comedy movie project in which he hoped to take a supporting role.

Actresses Whoopi Goldberg and Jodie Foster were among the few Hollywood stars to publicly defend Gibson at the height of the Grigorieva scandal last year.

Gibson was not surprised at the lack of support.

�Why would anyone want to speak publicly and drag themselves through this crap? ... Very many people are supportive of course, but you find out who your friends are.�

Mel Gibson ex wife Robyn said Mel is wonderful and loving father and never once abusive

When Mel Gibson was accused of abusing Oksana Grigorieva, his ex-wife Robyn wrote a statement. She said, �Mel never engaged in any physical abuse of any kind toward me before, during or after our marriage� Mel was a wonderful and loving father.� And with nearly 30 years of experience with the man, you�d think she would be a good judge of his character

Mel Gibson can survive abuse allegations, says Oliver Stone

Mel Gibson and Oksana Grigorieva at the Spanish premiere of the film 'Edge of Darkness' in Madrid

Mel Gibson was recorded verbally abusing Oksana Grigorieva, the mother of his child, but director Oliver Stone believes Hollywood will forgive him.





Although hardly flavour of the month after the allegations that he bruised his baby daughter during a row with his former girlfriend, Mel Gibson has won a vote of confidence from Oliver Stone, the maverick film director.

Stone tells Mandrake that the Oscar-winning star of Braveheart will continue to be offered leading roles in Hollywood. �Everyone is supposed to have an opinion [about Gibson], but most directors don�t work that way,� Stone said at the premiere of his latest film, South of the Border, at the Curzon Mayfair, in London.

He points out that press criticism of an actor is always immediate, whereas Hollywood works on a longer time scale. �Projects are developed slowly, and over the course of weeks, months, there will be projects, and I am sure many of them will want to have Mel Gibson in them,� he says.

Stone, who has won three Academy Awards for films including Midnight Express and Platoon, is no stranger to controversy himself. Criticised for promoting historical inaccuracies in such films as JFK, Stone also suggested that Adolf Hitler was �an easy scapegoat� in The Secret History of America.

Gibson�s former girlfriend, Oksana Grigorieva, 40, claimed last week that the 54-year-old actor had bruised his baby daughter during a row. Grigorieva intends to produce pictures of their daughter, Lucia, with an injured chin in a custody battle over the child.

She accused Gibson of punching her in the face and knocking out her teeth during a row in January when she was holding their then two-month-old daughter.

The accusation follows the release of expletive-ridden, taped telephone rants allegedly by Gibson in which he threatens Grigorieva.

Mel Gibson's ex in tape No 5: 'Why do you hate me so much?'-Detectives receive Mel Gibson audio recordings

Mel Gibson with ex girlfriend Oksana.Now facing child custory battle.Audio tape showing Gibson threating and racial slurs.




Mel Gibson in a scene from his upcoming movie How I Spent My Summer Vacation .

A Los Angeles County sheriff's spokesman says detectives investigating Mel Gibson have received audio recordings from a court hearing the actor's child custody matter.







Sheriff's spokesman Steve Whitmore says detectives received the recordings Thursday morning after a court hearing. Several sheriff's detectives were spotted outside a closed hearing where Gibson's criminal attorney and attorneys for his ex-girlfriend appeared.

All of the attorneys declined comment. The sheriff's department is investigating whether the Academy Award-winner abused his ex-girlfriend, Russian singer Oksana Grigorieva, in January.

Whitmore says the detectives received CDs, but did not know how many recordings were on them. He says detectives will now work to authenticate the recordings for a possible criminal case.

Ready? Tape No. 5 of Mel Gibson yelling at ex-girlfriend Oksana Grigorieva has just been posted."Mel, I cannot be with somebody like this. You don't love me... This is someone who hates me. Why do you hate me so much?" asks Grigorieva at one point as Mel pants and rants.

And, she says, "You're very mean.""I'd like to show you what mean really is," yells Mel.

Money issues arise again, with Mel saying he needs cash so badly that he has resorted to selling some of his artwork collection. He also says he had to give up his Los Angeles Lakers tickets. "I don't have any (expletive) money! I have to support you and everybody else! I have to sell paintings. I have to sell my box at the Lakers game," Gibson screams.

Oksana's lawyers will be in court this morning asking a family law judge to strip Mel of custody of their daughter, using the tapes as evidence Mel is dangerous, reports TMZ. The authenticity of the tapes is likely to be raised.

On the Today show this morning, an audio expert who has worked for the FBI and CIA verified that the tapes are legit.

Mel Gibson's camp has not commented.