Movies

Mel Gibson to work on Jewish warrior movie

Published Friday, Sep 9 2011, 03:42 BST | By Rebecca Davies | 4 comments

Mel Gibson is working on a movie about Jewish warrior Judah Maccabee, according to reports.

The Lethal Weapon actor, who has caused controversy with his anti-Semitic comments in the past, has apparently teamed up with screenwriter Joe Eszterhas to co-write, produce and possibly direct the Warner Brothers film.

According to Deadline, the untitled drama will tell the story of the leader of the Jewish revolt against Greek-Syrian armies in the second century BC.

The Maccabee movie was allegedly first discussed between Gibson and Warner Brothers after his 2006 Malibu arrest, when he reportedly insulted a Jewish police officer.

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Joe Eszterhas has previously worked on films such as Flashdance and Basic Instinct, and he was also awarded the Emanuel Foundation's Lifetime Achievement Award in 1996 for his writings about the Holocaust in Hungary.

Gibson was accused of assaulting then-girlfriend Oksana Grigorieva earlier this year. He was recently ordered to pay her $750,000 (£461,616) in the custody case for their daughter Lucia.