Here we go again. In recent years, Mel Gibson’s found himself stuck in a never-ending series of DTV-style action thrillers, similar to the kind of fare Bruce Willis churned out before his retirement. Along with his contemporaries like John Travolta, John Cusack and many others, Gibson seems totally stuck in a rut, with virtually all of these films (most of which he only has minor roles in) going totally unnoticed. Has anyone seen Panama, Agent Game, On the Line, Confidential Informant, Desperation Road, Dangerous or Force of Nature? There have been some bright spots, such as the solid Bandit (a movie he was proud of when I interviewed him) or Fatman, but for the most part, Gibson’s career as an actor in mainstream movies seems limited to this kind of fare, which is a shame. Nevertheless, he’s still out there cranking out VOD movies, with Boneyard being the latest. You can watch the trailer above, with the film teaming him up with Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson.
In the crime thriller Boneyard, Gibson plays an FBI profiler on the trail of a serial killer, with the film carrying an “inspired by true events” title card. While I’d love to give the movie the benefit of the doubt, the trailer seems pretty generic, although Gibson seems to be having fun in his loud Hawaiian shirts. Indeed, you can always rely on Gibson to bring his A-game, with him not the type to phone in his performances.
Boneyard is directed by Asif Akbar, who made three movies last year and already has another 2024 release, Skeletons in the Closet (starring Terrence Howard and Cuba Gooding Jr), in the bag. He’s got no less than three other movies in the works, with him seemingly churning out these kinds of films left and right.
Boneyard co-stars Brick’s Nora Zehetner, as well as Den of Thieves co-star Brian Van Holt. Boneyard hits (some) theaters on June 5th and will be on VOD on July 2nd. The film was produced by Colin Bates, Tamas Nadas, Asif Akbar, and Vincent E. McDaniel.
Do you think Gibson could ever pull a Nicolas Cage and escape the VOD purgatory he’s found himself in? Maybe his upcoming directorial vehicle, Flight Risk, will do the trick? Let us know in the comments.