10 Biggest TV Controversies Of 2023
4. Mel Gibson's Casting - The Continental
Though there was much excitement about a TV prequel to the John Wick franchise, much of that enthusiasm was stymied following the casting of Mel Gibson in the role of Cormac O'Connor, the vicious proprietor of the New York Continental in the 1970s.
Gibson has remained a polarising public figure for the better part of 20 years due to an infamous anti-Semitic and sexist outburst made during a 2006 DUI arrest, and a 2010 racist tirade leaked to the press.
Though many perceived that Gibson had been accepted back into the Hollywood fold when his 2016 film Hacksaw Ridge nabbed him a Best Director Oscar nomination, he remains an incredibly contentious individual who has struggled to find himself cast in major projects.
And so, Gibson's casting in The Continental was disappointing and off-putting to many, no matter that directors and producers who worked on the series defended his role, ascertaining that they found Gibson "perfect" for the part.
Gibson certainly gives an amusingly scenery-chewing performance in the show, though his mere presence was also enough to cause some to immediately tune out.