"I got the tweet at the same time as all of you and was just as surprised. Nevertheless, I heed the call,” said Gibson in a statement.

President-elect Donald Trump’s naming of Mel Gibson as one of his “special envoys” to Hollywood surprised many, including Gibson himself. Trump on Thursday said Gibson and his fellow pro-Trump actors Sylvester Stallone and Jon Voight would act as his “eyes and ears” in the industry.

Donald Trump wants to make Hollywood “bigger, better and stronger” and has cast Mel Gibson, Jon Voight and Sylvester Stallone as stars of what he is calling his “Special Ambassadors to a great but very troubled place,