Mel Gibson

Growing up, Mel Gibson considered becoming a journalist, a chef, or a religious brother. Then Gibson’s older sister Mary secretly submitted $5 along with an application for the recent high school graduate to the National Institute of Dramatic Art in Sydney. After the audition, Gibson was accepted into an acting class that included Judy Davis and Steve Bisley. The students at NIDA were classically trained in the British theatre tradition rather than for screen acting. As students, Gibson and Judy Davis played the leads in Romeo and Juliet, and Gibson played the role of Queen Titania in an experimental production of A Midsummer Night's Dream.. After graduation in 1977, Gibson immediately began work on the filming of Mad Max, but he continued to work as a stage actor, joining the State Theatre Company of South Australia in Adelaide. Gibson’s theatrical credits include Waiting for Godot, playing Estragon opposite Geoffrey Rush, and a 1982 Sydney production of Death of a Salesman, playing Biff Loman. Gibson’s most recent theatrical performance was a 1993 Telluride production of Love Letters by A. R. Gurney, opposite Sissy Spacek. At the beginning of his acting career, Gibson also appeared in television pilots for series including The Sullivans, Cop Shop and Punishment.