In a chilly return to the McCarthy era of witch hunts,Oscar-winning MEL GIBSON has been blacklisted from new sequel Hangover 2.
When Mad Mel first signed on director Todd Phillips and Warner Bros. (Mad Mel’s long time studio) were as giddy as a Mayan seeing a Spanish warship before the sudden backlash began.
Unnamed actors and crew members gave Gibson the thumbs down after his summer of headline- making bad press after his epithet spewing rants against baby mama OKSANA GRIEGORIEVA surfaced in all their unexpurgated glory.
The ENQUIRER can now reveal which actor had been in turmoil over an "undisclosed decision" by studio bosses when a certain rotund funnyman with a "Due Date" lambasted the hiring of Mel in a podcast.
"I’m in a deep protest right now with a movie I’m working on, up in arms about something, " Zach Galifianakis said.
When suddenly — Mel was OUT!
"I thought Mel would have been great in the movie and I had the full backing of (the studio)," said the director Todd Phillips.
"But I realize filmmaking is a collaborative effort, and this decision ultimately did not have the full support of my entire cast and crew."
When the announcement was first made that Mel was aboard the new buddy-disaster flick cast there was much glad-handing and fist pumping as The Braveheart star’s character was to be as pivotal to the plot as convicted rapist boxing champ Mike Tyson was in the first Hangover.
And now the only thing it’s pivotal to is the sudden unemployablility of Hollywood’s once-most bankable star.
