Mel Gibson Opens Up About Leaked Oksana Grigorieva 'Edited' Audio Tapes

(ABCNEWS.com)

In his first interview since leaked audio tapes recorded his rant against ex-girfriend Oksana Grigorieva, Mel Gibson talked openly about his life now and how the tape scandal was "one terribly awful moment in time," according to a Deadline Hollywood story posted Thursday.

Here are the top five revelations from Gibson's interview with journalist Allison Hope Weiner:

1. Leaked 'Edited' Audio Tapes?

In March, Gibson pleaded guilty to a charge of misdemeanor battery against Grigorieva, who is also the mother of his 1-year-old daughter.

Instead of jail time, he received 36 months of informal probation, community service, a year of domestic violence counseling and $570 in fines.

Stemming from a January 2010 fight, Grigorieva accused the actor of hitting her and their daughter and verbally berating her in several phone calls.

Some of the phone calls were leaked online.

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Gibson told Weiner that he regretted what he said and that he was "angry" with himself. When asked if people were angry with him about his rant, he said "no one expressed any anger at me. They may have felt it."

But Gibson emphasized that one has to take into consideration the context of the situation that the audio tapes captured and that they were edited.

"You have to put it all in the proper context of being in an irrationally, heated discussion at the height of a breakdown, trying to get out of a really unhealthy relationship," Gibson said in the interview with Weiner. "It's one terribly, awful moment in time, said to one person, in the span of one day and doesn't represent what I truly believe or how I've treated people my entire life."

In regards to the guilty plea in the domestic violence case, Gibson said he was "allowed to end the case and still maintain his innocence."

Calls made by ABCNews.com to Grigorieva's attorneys for comment Thursday night were not immediately returned.

2. Hollywood Friends Defend Gibson

Besides his public court battle with Grigorieva, Gibson's past actions have generated other controversies including a 2006 drunk driving arrest that turned later into anti-Semitic rant.

But some Hollywood stars have come to his defense. Actresses Whoopi Goldberg and Jodie Foster have publicly defended Gibson.

Gibson said it "didn't bother him" that only a few people have stood up for him. "Very many people are supportive, of course, but you find out who your friends are. I have many friends and they've been great," Gibson told Weiner.