Mel Gibson blasted Democrat California Governor Gavin Newsom on Wednesday, calling for the recall of the governor over his “gross mismanagement” of the state, especially when it comes to the massive wildfires in Southern California.
During a press conference in Los Angeles, the 69-year-old actor told the crowd that both Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass let them down after Gibson became one of the numerous people who lost their homes in the Palisades Fire and Eaton Fire.
“Governor Newsom and Karen Bass let us all down,” Gibson said, pointing out how much California residents pay in taxes. “Now for that kind of money, we deserve much more and much better, and there is absolutely no adequate excuse the governor or mayor can make for this gross mismanagement and failure to preemptively deal with what they knew was coming.”
“Was it incompetence? Was it indifference, complacency, carelessness? Was it negligence? Absolutely,” he added, asking the crowd if the mayor or governor “give a damn about you,” to which the crowd replied, “no.” “Newsom … has brought us nothing but rampant crime, acute homelessness, horrendous inflation.”
Mel Gibson speaks at Newsom recall event ????
“Governor Newsom and Karen Bass let us all down.”
“There is absolutely no adequate excuse the Governor or Mayor can make for this gross mismanagement and failure to preemptively deal with what they knew was coming.” pic.twitter.com/jwH61x4EYG
— TONY™ (@TONYxTWO) February 27, 2025
“I mean, the industry I work in, the film industry, this used to be the Mecca of filmdom. It is no more. All of my fellow citizens who have lost their homes, they have no recourse, no insurance payouts because the carriers dropped them,” Gibson continued, per The Hollywood Reporter. “Even the carriers realized that California was ill-prepared and had scant resources to deal with the inevitable fires. They knew that. So are we supposed to believe that our elected officials didn’t know that? Of course they knew that. Of course.”
At one point, “The Passion of the Christ” director praised the firefighters who worked hard to try and save the homes.
“The firefighters, I have to say they were practically in tears. You know why? Because they thought they had let us down,” Gibson said. “I want to say loudly right here: You did not let us down.”
The event, which was organized by Saving California, is focused on recalling Newsom and fixing the state’s economy, per its website.
In January, Gibson opened up about how he wasn’t even in town when the fires consumed his Malibu home because he was in Austin, Texas, recording an episode with Joe Rogan for “The Joe Rogan Experience” podcast, as previously reported.
“I was doing the Rogan podcast. … And [I was] kind of ill at ease while we were talking, because I knew my neighborhood was on fire, so I thought, I wonder if my place is still there. But when I got home, sure enough, it wasn’t there,” Gibson said. “I went home and I said to myself, well, at least I haven’t got any of those pesky plumbing problems anymore.”
The actor admitted he was still dealing with the “devastating” impact of losing the home that he’d lived in for more than a decade.
Related: ‘Your Heart Just Breaks’: Jeff Bridges, Mel Gibson, And Others Become Latest To Lose Homes In Fires