Mel Gibson Glad Lennon Was Shot: Screenwriter

Yet another potential reason to dislike Mel Gibson: He was happy when John Lennon was shot, says screenwriter and almost-collaborator Joe Eszterhas. And that's only part of a laundry list of serious complaints Eszterhas bares about Gibson now that the two have had a major falling out over a planned film about Jewish warrior Judah Maccabee. Gibson was expected to produce or direct the film, but Eszterhas claims after his script was rejected that the actor never really intended to because he "hates Jews," the writer accuses Gibson in a scathing nine-page letter obtained by The Wrap.

He also reveals that Gibson said of John Lennon: "I'm glad he's dead. He was f-----g Messianic. Listen to his songs." Gibson has called "the great majority of statements" in the letter "utter fabrications," admitting, however, that he did lose his temper during their last meeting and said some things he regrets because Eszterhas' script was "substandard" and a "significant waste of time," reports TMZ. "I think that we can agree that this should be our last communication," Gibson concludes in his own letter. Plans for the film have now been suspended by Warner Bros., reports the Los Angeles Times. (More Mel Gibson stories.)