Mel Colm-Cille Gerard Gibson, popularly known as Mel Gibson, is an American actor and filmmaker. He is an Academy Award winner and is well-known for his portrayal of characters in movies like Mad Max and the Lethal Weapon series. Born in New York, his family moved to Sydney, Australia for safety and domestic stability when he was just 12. His father feared that if he stayed in the U.S., both his sons would be drafted for the Vietnam War. In Australia, after completing his school education, Mel Gibson enrolled at a drama school. This became the turning point of his life. From theatre, he soon went on to give his first hit movie Mad Max in Australia, and then captivated the US audience as well with its sequels and other movies. People magazine named him the Sexiest Man Alive in 1985. The movie Braveheart proved to the audience that his directing skills were as good as his acting skills. This successful change from actor to director earned him comparisons with Clint Eastwood. But outside of his work, his life has been marred by his controversies such as, alcoholism, drunk driving, domestic violence, drug addiction, and accusations of him being a homophobic, anti-Semitic, racist, and misogynist.