Mel Gibson was walking toward the stage at Fan Expo Canada in Toronto when he decided that the sign language interpreter standing in front of him was someone to mock.
He did it right behind her, moving his hands in a gesture that imitated and ridiculed her work, while the woman continued translating for the deaf audience watching her. The video went viral within hours, and the deaf community was quick to point out the obvious: it wasn’t a joke; it was contempt for a language and a profession. What fueled the outrage even further was the contrast: at that same event, actor Alan Ritchson approached the same interpreter after finishing his talk and shook her hand respectfully.
Two days later, Gibson came out to apologize publicly. He called it ‘thoughtless idiocy’ and assured everyone that there had been no intention to hurt anyone. But for many, the apology came too late, and the video had already reopened old wounds surrounding his history of offensive comments.