Mel Gibson dropped from Hangover sequel

Just days after Mel Gibson landed a cameo role in the sequel to The Hangover comes news that the embattled actor and filmmaker has been dropped from the anticipated film.

Warner Bros. Pictures and director Todd Phillips announced on Thursday that Gibson's appearance in the ensemble comedy The Hangover Part II has been cancelled.

Gibson had signed on for a cameo as a tattoo artist.

"I thought Mel would have been great in the movie, and I had the full backing of [producers]," Phillips said in a statement, "but I realize filmmaking is a collaborative effort, and this decision ultimately did not have the full support of my entire cast and crew."

According to trade newspaper Hollywood Reporter, the Gibson casting "triggered an internal backlash at the studio and on the film set."

A blockbuster hit in 2009, The Hangover starred Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms, Justin Bartha and Zach Galifianakis as a group of friends travelling to Las Vegas for a bachelor party ahead of one's wedding. It included a cameo by former boxer Mike Tyson.

The sequel, slated for release in 2011, reunites the four actors for a new adventure in Bangkok.

Gibson, the former Hollywood A-list star of the Mad Max and Lethal Weapon films as well as the Oscar-winning Braveheart, has damaged his reputation over anti-Semitic, racist, homophobic and misogynistic comments he's made.

He was back in the headlines again this summer when he became embroiled in a much-publicized domestic violence investigation and custody battle with former girlfriend Oksana Grigorieva over the couple's infant daughter. 

After the release of offensive voicemail messages, purportedly of Gibson screaming at his ex-girlfriend, his talent agency dropped him as a client. The Beaver, a dark drama starring Gibson and directed by longtime friend Jodie Foster, also appears to have been indefinitely shelved amid the latest scandal.