Mel Gibson Laughs Off Taped Rant: I’ve Got A ‘Bit Of A Temper’

First Published: April 28, 2012 7:11 PM EDT Credit: Getty Premium

Caption Mel Gibson chats with Jay Leno on ‘The Tonight Show With Jay Leno’ in Los Angeles on April 27, 2012

LOS ANGELES, Calif. -- Mel Gibson has spoken out about the obscenity-laced rant secretly taped (and later released) by writer Joe Eszterhas.

During a visit to “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” on Friday, Mel kept a sense of humor while addressing the tape released by the former “Maccabees” writer.

“Was it just you just swearing at the guy?” Jay asked the “Gringo” star of the tape, in which the actor can be heard shouting obscenities.

“Yeah, pretty much… maybe you don’t know this about me, but I’ve got a little bit of a temper,” he told Jay with a chuckle.

On a more serious note, Mel said he reacted with anger because “14 or 15 months” had gone by before Joe produced a script.

“It’s kind of like you build a house, you hire a guy to put a roof on it. He comes over and talks about the roof and then you get rained on. Wouldn’t you be kind of peeved?” he told Jay. “He finally got one, but it was so bad that Warner [Bros.] rejected it.”

As for his current status with Joe, Mel shook his head and paused before saying, “I shall pray for him,” adding that the entire situation has left him “kinda peeved.”

“But that’s OK,” he shrugged. “It’s been kinda weird the last couple of years – it’s like living in a bad B movie.”

Despite the stress of Mel’s battle with the writer, the actor said his 2-and-a-half-year-old daughter, Lucia (whom he had with ex-girlfriend Oksana Grigorieva), is an enormous source of joy in his life.

“She’s so adorable. She’s like this precious gift – such an angel,” the proud dad said. “She makes me laugh like crazy.”