LA fires: ‘Nothing left’ of Mel Gibson’s house as he urges California governor to ‘spend less on hair gel’
Mel Gibson says there is “nothing left” of his Hollywood home following the LA wildfires and “someone should answer” for the devastation.
The Braveheart star was with podcaster Joe Rogan when the flames engulfed his Malibu mansion and said he was a “little tense” while recording their discussion.
But he knew his family were “out of harm’s way” and a few “necessary things” such as passports were saved.
The loss of his home and others is “tragic”, however, and it “makes you really sad”, he added.
While describing lost items as “only things”, he said they included “works of art, photographs, [and] rare books”, some of them dating back to 1600.
Regarding the conduct of the authorities, he told Fox News: “Apparently, some people were asleep on the job, mainly our leaders.
“That’s something they have to live with. Kids are traumatised. Someone should answer for it.”
Asked if he had a message for California governor Gavin Newsom, or Karen Bass, the mayor of Los Angeles, he commented: “Spend less on hair gel.”
LA fires latest: Civilian drone ‘rips hole in emergency plane’
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Celebrities’ homes have burned down in the LA fires
At least 16 people have been killed in the blazes, with more than 100,000 asked to evacuate their homes.
The fires have affected multiple celebrities, ripping through exclusive suburbs in southern California, home to film stars and billionaires.
Legendary British actor Sir Anthony Hopkins has reportedly lost his home in the Pacific Palisades fire.
The star – perhaps best known for his performance as Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs – posted a message on Instagram, in which he said: “As we all struggle to heal from the devastation of these fires, it’s important we remember that the only thing we take with us is the love we give.”
The mother of British child star Rory Sykes, 32, has confirmed her son died in the Pacific Palisades fire.
Sykes appeared in TV programme Kiddy Kapers in the 1990s.
Shelley Sykes said her “beautiful son” was “born blind with cerebral palsy and had difficulty walking” but had overcome “so much with surgeries and therapies to regain his sight and to be able to learn to walk”.
Pic: Paris Hilton/Instagram/Reuters
Paris Hilton, meanwhile, says her “heart shattered into a million pieces” after visiting the charred remains of her Malibu beach house.
Describing herself as “in complete shock”, the hotel heiress said seeing her family memories “reduced to ashes” was “devastating”.
Mel Gibson. File pic: Reuters
Hilton, 43, said she watched her home burn to the ground on TV – and shared a video on social media from inside the gutted structure.
She said she was grateful to be safe along with her husband Carter Reum and their two children, Phoenix and London, but was still devastated.
She wrote on Instagram: “I’m standing here in what used to be our home, and the heartbreak is truly indescribable.
“When I first saw the news, I was in complete shock – I couldn’t process it. But now, standing here and seeing it with my own eyes, it feels like my heart has shattered into a million pieces.”
She has lived in the multi-million-pound property for three years.
Water dropped by helicopter on the burning Sunset Fire in the Hollywood Hills. Pic: AP
Hilton added: “This house wasn’t just a place to live – it was where we dreamed, laughed, and created the most beautiful memories as a family.
“It was where [son] Phoenix’s little hands made art that I’ll cherish forever, where love and life filled every corner. To see it reduced to ashes… it’s devastating beyond words.
“What breaks my heart even more is knowing that this isn’t just my story. So many people have lost everything. It’s not just walls and roofs – it’s the memories that made those houses homes. It’s the photos, the keepsakes, the irreplaceable pieces of our lives.”
She described herself as “incredibly lucky”, adding: “My loved ones – my babies – and my pets are safe. That’s the most important thing”.
She thanked the firefighters, first responders and volunteers who she said were “all risking their lives” to help, adding: “Even in the ashes, there is still beauty in this world.”
The West Hills section of Los Angeles. Pic: AP
Read more:
What caused the ferocious fires and when will they end?
Furious LA woman challenges governor over wildfires response
LA fires as of Friday morning
Presenter Ricki Lake said she and her husband Ross had lost their “dream home” and their “heaven on earth”.
She said on Instagram: “We never took our heavenly spot on the bluff overlooking our beloved Malibu for granted, not even for one second.
“This loss is immeasurable. It’s the spot where we got married three years ago. I grieve along with all of those suffering during this apocalyptic event.”
The ancestral home of Big Lebowski actor Jeff Bridges is also understood to have been destroyed.
The four-bedroom home, which had been in the Bridges family for generations, was inherited by Bridges and his two siblings in 2018 according to the Los Angeles Times.
Tina Knowles, mother of singer Beyonce, has also lost a house she owned in Malibu to the fires.
Tina Knowles with Jay-Z, Beyonce and Blue Ivy Carter in December. Pic: AP
She shared a short video of dolphins playing in the sea on Instagram, writing: “This is what I was looking at on my birthday this past weekend from my tiny little bungalow on the water in Malibu! It was my favourite place, my sanctuary, my sacred Happy Place. Now it is gone!!”
She went on to thank the fire department and first responders and offered condolences to others affected by the fires.
Take That star Mark Owen and his family were evacuated from their home, his wife Emma Ferguson describing them waking to “helicopters, thick black smoke and winds howling”.
She said that while she was grateful her family was safe, it was “exhausting” to be “constantly looking online to see if your house is gone”.
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Steve Guttenberg: ‘I’ve seen such tragedy’
Actor Steve Guttenberg, best known for his role in the Police Academy film franchise, has called the fires “absolutely the worst” he has ever seen and has been doing what he can to help distressed residents.
Other stars to have lost their homes in the fires include Billy Crystal, Miles Teller, Diane Warren, Cary Elwes, Milo Ventimiglia, Anna Faris, Adam Brody and Leighton Meester, Spencer Pratt and Heidi Montag.
On Friday, the Recording Academy, which runs the Grammy Awards, and charity MusiCares pledged $1m (£813,000) to support music artists affected by the fires.
Actress Jamie Lee Curtis has pledged the same amount to fire relief efforts from her family foundation.
US
Trump engaged in unprecedented criminal effort to overturn 2020 election, prosecutor’s report says
President-elect Donald Trump engaged in an unprecedented criminal effort to overturn his 2020 election defeat, according to a report by Special Counsel Jack Smith.
Prosecutor Mr Smith said Mr Trump “inspired his supporters to commit acts of physical violence” in the January 6 riots and knowingly spread a false narrative about fraud in the 2020 election.
However, efforts to bring Mr Trump to trial over his attempt to hold on to power were thwarted by his re-election in November, the special prosecutor said in his report, which was released by the Department of Justice on Tuesday.
He also found charges could be justified against Mr Trump’s co-conspirators but reached no final conclusions.
Rioters loyal to President Donald Trump rally at the US Capitol on 6 January, 2021. Pic: AP
Mr Smith resigned in the wake of Mr Trump’s election victory in November.
“Indeed, but for Mr Trump’s election and imminent return to the Presidency, the Office assessed that the admissible evidence was sufficient to obtain and sustain a conviction at trial,” Mr Smith’s report said.
The release of the report comes a few days after Mr Trump was sentenced following his conviction in the Stormy Daniels hush money case.
Special counsel Jack Smith. Pic: AP
President-elect Mr Trump has consistently criticised Mr Smith and allies have suggested the special counsel should now face criminal charges for pursuing the case against him.
In the wake of the release of the report, Mr Trump called Mr Smith “deranged” and criticised the report’s “fake findings”.
Released alongside the report was a letter from lawyers for Mr Trump to the justice department, dated 6 January 2025.
In it, they called for Mr Smith to “terminate all efforts toward the preparation and release” of the report, which they said was “consistent with the bad-faith crusade” that they said Mr Smith conducted on behalf of the Biden-Harris administration.
The special prosecutor defended his investigation, saying: “The claim from Mr Trump that my decisions as a prosecutor were influenced or directed by the Biden administration or other political actors is, in a word, laughable.”
Read more:
January 6: The case against Donald Trump
January 6: How four hours of mayhem unfolded
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Hush money case: Trump reacts to becoming a felon
Mr Smith’s case had faced legal hurdles even before it was clear that Mr Trump would be returning to the White House.
It was paused for months as the former president pursued a legal claim that he could not be prosecuted for official actions taken during his time as commander-in-chief.
The Supreme Court, with its conservative majority, largely agreed with him, granting former presidents broad immunity from criminal prosecution.
Other allegations in the report released today include:
• Mr Trump contacted legislators and executives at state level and “urged them to take action to ignore the vote counts and change the results”
• Mr Trump and co-conspirators launched a plan to use fraudulent electors in seven states that he had lost in the 2020 election to send false certifications to Washington DC
• Frustrated with the justice department because it had identified no evidence of substantial fraud in the 2020 election, Mr Trump “attempted to wield federal power to perpetuate his fraud claims and retain office”
• Mr Trump repeatedly pressed then vice president Mike Pence to use his ministerial position as president of the Senate to change the election outcome – something Mr Pence repeatedly refused to do.
Police are reportedly focusing on a possible human cause in early investigations into what caused the deadly Palisades fire in Los Angeles.
Several law enforcement sources told Sky’s partner site NBC News potential lines of inquiry involve fireworks or unauthorised individuals camping in the area.
Stressing no conclusions have been reached, they said other possibilities include accidental equipment-related ignition, and said arson is not being ruled out.
Fires latest – at least 24 people killed
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Sky presenter challenges LA officials
At least 24 people have been killed and thousands of homes destroyed in the wildfires that have raged across Los Angeles.
Most of the destruction has been wrought by the Palisades fire, which has torched nearly 24,000 acres and is just 14% contained, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire).
Officials have not yet identified the cause of any of the Los Angeles fires.
Firefighters put out a smouldering hot spot. Pics: Reuters
A lawsuit has been filed against utility company Southern California Edison claiming its equipment sparked the Eaton fire.
The blaze in the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains east of the city has burned through 14,000 acres and was 33% contained, according to Cal Fire.
Edison has acknowledged fire agencies are investigating whether its equipment may have started a smaller fire in the LA area that broke out on the same day.
Read more:
Santa Ana winds that fuelled wildfires are back – here’s what it could mean
A woman walks past destroyed homes. Pic: Reuters
It comes as additional firefighters and water tankers have deployed ahead of the forecast return of fierce Santa Ana winds which threaten to whip up the two massive wildfires.
Planes have been working to douse homes and hillsides with pink fire-retardant chemicals, while dozens of water trucks have worked to replenish supplies after hydrants ran dry last week.
“We’re absolutely better prepared,” LA County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone said when he was asked what will be different from a week ago.
But he warned high winds could ground firefighting aircraft and said if they reach 70mph “it’s going to be very difficult to contain that fire”.
A third fire that has burned nearly 800 acres is 95% contained, while three other fires in California have been fully brought under control in recent days.
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