Mel Gibson’s Stock High: Two months after the phenomenal success of his film The Passion of the Christ Mel Gibson is being courted by many in Hollywood for his ‘connection to middle America,’ but is still held at arm’s length by others who found his film divisive. In the film world, meanwhile, studio executives say that Mr. Gibson’s reputation is up with audiences, and thus on the rise with them, whether or not they were fans of “Passion.” Forbes magazine named him the most powerful celebrity in the country, a ranking based on news media coverage and financial success. Significantly, in the movie industry, which tends to be liberal and secular in outlook, as well as disproportionately Jewish, few people interviewed about “Passion.” said they had actually seen the movie. But many said they admired Mr. Gibson’s courage in financing and producing it himself. The film took in $608 million worldwide to rank as this year’s highest grossing film so far. (NY Times 6/24/04)
http://garydfoster.com/