The most successful R-rated film in history ($612 million worldwide) made director Gibson part of a roiling religious conversation. “It was a tidal wave of emotion and feeling and hysteria. It came from all directions. Honestly, I didn’t see it coming. I had a little, small-budget film and I thought, ‘It won’t do much but that’s OK because Im not spending much.’ And it became this overwhelming thing. There were other films on the same subject that never got that kind of reaction. People come up to me all the time and say that the movie had this profound effect on their lives, and I’m talking about people from all creeds, all colors and all ages. It looked like it would be divisive and crazy -- that’s how it was made to appear, at least -- and instead it brought people together. That’s not how it was framed. ‘Framed’ is an interesting word, isn’t it?” (Philippe Antonello / Associated Press)
Gibson directed this tale of Jaguar Paw, a young man selected for sacrifice in a decaying Mayan empire. “The Mayans had their version of heaven and their version of hell but they weren’t equal. If you were unfortunate enough to end up in the bad place there were these horrible twins that liked cutting your head off for eternity. The heaven for them was being able to sit under the shade of the sable tree. But I think it was more about a state of being.” (Andrew Cooper / Icon Distribution)
