Mel Gibson 'surprised' by Trump naming him 'special ambassador' to Hollywood

Mel Gibson is "surprised" President-elect Donald Trump named him a "special ambassador" to Hollywood.

The "Braveheart" star told entertainment outlet Variety on Thursday that he was ready to serve under Trump.

"I got the tweet at the same time as all of you and was just as surprised. Nevertheless, I heed the call. My duty as a citizen is to give any help and insight I can," Gibson said in a statement to USA TODAY on Friday.

"Any chance the position comes with an Ambassador’s residence?" Gibson joked.

Trump took to conservative social platform Truth Social to name Gibson a "special ambassador" to Hollywood alongside fellow conservative actors Jon Voight and Sylvester Stallone.

Donald Trump taps Sylvester Stallone, Mel Gibson and Jon Voight to be Hollywood 'ambassadors'

"It is my honor to announce Jon Voight, Mel Gibson, and Sylvester Stallone, to be Special Ambassadors to a great but very troubled place, Hollywood, California," Trump wrote Thursday. "They will serve as Special Envoys to me for the purpose of bringing Hollywood, which has lost much business over the last four years to Foreign Countries, BACK—BIGGER, BETTER, AND STRONGER THAN EVER BEFORE!"

He continued: "These three very talented people will be my eyes and ears, and I will get done what they suggest. It will again be, like The United States of America itself, The Golden Age of Hollywood!"

USA TODAY reached out to reps for Voight and Stallone for comment.

Jon Voight responds to Trump appointment: 'We are fortunate'

Voight opened up about the appointment in a statement provided to USA TODAY on Friday.

"I’m old enough to have touched some years of the Golden Age of Hollywood, and I’ve seen its slow deterioration since. Today, we are in pretty bad shape," the "Midnight Cowboy" actor said. "Very few films are made here now, but we are fortunate to have an incoming President, who wants to restore Hollywood to its former glory, and with his help, I feel we can get done.

He continued: "Now we have been through these horrible fires and our spirits are down, but we are resilient. We will help each other and we will rebuild. Love to everyone across the nation who has come to our aid."

The U.S. film and television industries have faced some major hurdles in recent years between the COVID-19 pandemic, long-running strikes and economic troubles. It wasn't immediately clear what the actors' responsibilities would be in this role or how much authority they would have.

Gibson implied in a video posted by TMZ in October that he had cast his vote for Trump in 2024, saying it was a "pretty good guess" when asked if he backed the GOP nominee.

"I know what it will be like if we let her in ... and that ain't good," Gibson added, referring to Trump's opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris.

Contributing: Savannah Kuchar

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Mel Gibson 'surprised' Trump named him 'ambassador' to Hollywood