Hollywood Takes on 'Passion'

Now they're threatening Mel Gibson (search).

Never mind "The Passion of the Christ" (search) will likely prove a hit, Mel taking a hit from Hollywood types.

One tells the New York Daily News he's all but a marked man. Directors will avoid him. And one goes so far as to say audiences will move on from him. No more "Lethal Weapon" sequels. No more "Signs."

Says who? Says some Hollywood honcho irked by the "Passion" or Mel's passion to make it? I just wonder whether those in Hollywood would be jawboning as much if Mel had taken on a different movie project ... Let's say, "The Passion of Global Warming" or "The Passion of Migrant Workers."

No, Hollywood selects what passions are appropriate.

Steven Spielberg's "Schindler's List" (search) rightfully commands respect. Tom Hanks' portrayal of an AIDS-ravaged patient in "Philadelphia" (search) rightfully wins kudos. But Mel Gibson talking about the most scrutinized death in history ... That's a different standard?

Why?

I don't think it's the violence or the subtitles. I think it's the subject. I think ... it's Jesus. Too religious.

Something I'd never say of Hollywood. Far easier is it for Tinseltown to make a mockery of priests than to say anything good about Christianity itself. But this isn't about Christians or priests or Buddhists or Jews. This is about one solitary life. And one horrible death.

Too horrible for Hollywood to fathom. Too big for Hollywood to appreciate. Better to put it down and exact revenge on the guy who created it than say a good word and realize that guy might have re-invented Hollywood because of it.

Some Hollywood elitists will try to marginalize Mel. Little do they know that throngs are set to see a movie that marginalizes them.

Watch Neil Cavuto's Common Sense weekdays at 4 p.m. ET on Your World with Cavuto.