Mel Gibson wanted ‘Schindler’s List’ role before antisemitic rant

More than two decades before his infamous roadside antisemitic rant, Mel Gibson was angling to star in “Schindler’s List.” 

According to the Hollywood Reporter, the “Mad Max” actor “was interested” in playing Oskar Schindler, a member of the Nazi party who saved more than 1,000 Jews during the Holocaust. 

“Mel Gibson’s name came up,” Creative Artists Agency founder Michael Ovitz told the trade. “He was interested. His agent put him forward. But it wasn’t going to happen. Steven [Spielberg, the film’s director,] wanted a non-movie star for the part.”

The role instead went to Liam Neeson, and the film went on to win the Academy Award for Best Picture. Neeson told THR that other big-name actors floated for Schindler included Harrison Ford and Kevin Costner.

In 2006, 13 years after the film came out, Gibson was pulled over in Malibu, Calif., on suspicion of driving under the influence and made bigoted remarks to the police officer.

“F–king Jews. The Jews are responsible for all the wars in the world. Are you a Jew?” he said to LA County Sheriff Deputy James Mee, according to a report of the arrest. 

Mee added that “Gibson almost continually threatened me, saying he ‘owns Malibu’ and will spend all of his money to ‘get even’ with me.”

Gibson, who forged a directing career with films like “Braveheart” and “The Passion of the Christ,” later apologized.

“There is no excuse, nor should there be any tolerance, for anyone who thinks or expresses any kind of antisemitic remark,” Gibson said. 

“I want to apologize specifically to everyone in the Jewish community for the vitriolic and harmful words that I said to a law enforcement officer the night I was arrested on a DUI charge.”

In a 2020 interview with the Sunday Times of London, Winona Ryder claimed that Gibson made antisemitic and homophobic jokes to her in the early 1990s.

“I remember, like, 15 years ago, I was at one of those big Hollywood parties. And he was really drunk,” the “Stranger Things” actress said. 

“I was with my friend, who’s gay. He made a really horrible gay joke. And somehow it came up that I was Jewish. He said something about ‘oven dodgers,’ but I didn’t get it.”

Gibson denied the claims.

The actor will soon appear in at least two films that are in post-production, “Boys of Summer” and “Boneyard.” He is also said to be directing a fifth “Lethal Weapon” movie.