Winona Ryder Responds To Mel Gibson Denying That He Previously Made Anti-Semitic Comments To Her

In a statement via Winona Ryder’s rep to Access Hollywood, Ryder shared in part, “I believe in redemption and forgiveness and hope that Mr. Gibson has found a healthy way to deal with his demons, but I am not one of them.”

Over the weekend, Ryder spoke to The Sunday Times about an alleged encounter with Mel Gibson where she claims he made anti-Semitic comments to her and a friend during a party in the mid-1990s.

“We were at a crowded party with one of my good friends,” Ryder shared in the interview. “And Mel Gibson was smoking a cigar, and we’re all talking, and he said to my friend, who’s gay, ‘Oh wait, am I gonna get AIDS?’ And then something came up about Jews, and he said, ‘You’re not an oven dodger, are you?'”

On Tuesday, a rep for Gibson told Access Hollywood in a statement that Ryder’s allegations were “100% untrue” and claimed she had previously “lied” about the encounter. Gibson’s rep added that the “Braveheart” star had allegedly tried to apologize to her and to “confront her about her lies and she refused to address it with him.”

Following Gibson’s denial of the incident, Ryder is standing by her claims. In a statement provided to Access Hollywood on Tuesday by Ryder’s rep, she shared that she hopes that Gibson learns to accept responsibility for his alleged previous comments.

Ryder’s statement to Access Hollywood continued.

“Around 1996, my friend Kevyn Aucoin and I were on the receiving end of his hateful words. It is a painful and vivid memory for me. Only by accepting responsibility for our behavior in this life, can we make amends and truly respect each other, and I wish him well on this lifelong journey,” Ryder shared via her rep.