Mel Gibson Predicts Civilization ‘Collapse’ After L.A. Fires

Mel Gibson has a theory about the L.A. fires, he told Joe Rogan on a new episode of The Joe Rogan Experience Thursday, as he wait to find out whether his own house is still standing amid the city’s “inferno.”

“All those earmarks, the precursors of a collapse, they’re present in our time,” Gibson said in the episode released Thursday. “It doesn’t take long,” for a civilization to collapse, he added, citing Jared Diamond’s 2011 book Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed.

“It says all the things you need for a civilization to cave in and collapse,” Gibson continued, “It’s an interesting observation. And we’re no smarter than our grandparents.”

Gibson made the observation as he and Rogan discussed the state of his Malibu neighborhood. “[My son] sent me a video of my neighborhood and it’s in flames,” he said, “It looks like an inferno.”

Everything will be just fine for Gibson, however. “I got a place in Costa Rica—I love it there,” he said, before quipping later that may get “a new house” out of the ordeal.

One place that doesn’t have the benefit of his easy attitude about the fires’ destruction is Moonshadows Malibu, the restaurant and lounge where Gibson allegedly got drunk before he obtained his infamous 2006 DUI. Moonshadows announced this week that the Malibu location was “gone” due to the fires, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

As for who’s to blame for the destruction the fires are leaving behind, Gibson is taking a page from Donald Trump’s playbook by pointing the finger directly at the state’s governor, Gavin Newsom.

“I think Newsom said ‘I’m gonna take care of the forest and maintain the forest and do all that kinda stuff’—he didn’t do anything,” Gibson said Thursday, agreeing with Rogan’s assertion that the state had put tax dollars toward supporting the homeless population instead of preventing the fires. Gibson then joked, “I think all our tax dollars probably went to Gavin’s hair gel.”