Thomas Gibson is going to need a major apology tour if he hopes to get his career back on track, a PR expert says.
“Beyond everything else, he has to sincerely apologize,” EKC Public Relations founder Eileen Koch told TheWrap about the former “Criminal Minds” lead. “And he needs to go to anger management or something. Make the attempt.”
Gibson was let go from “Criminal Minds” last week following an on-set incident in which he kicked a show writer in the leg. The CBS series’ lead had appeared on 255 episodes of the popular procedural.
The matter was officially taken up with CBS after the writer complained to his agent. Gibson, who was also directing the episode, was put on ice for two episodes before ultimately being released. For his part, Gibson has said he kicked the staffer in retaliation after he became “aggressive.”
“I would really tell him, ‘Be humble,’” Koch said of Gibson. “He should get to the point of saying like, ‘I feel humiliated and embarrassed that I behaved that way, like a kid in school. Even then, it’s 150 percent wrong.’”
This is not the first time Gibson’s temper has gotten the better of him either. He was previously sent to anger management after an argument with a “Criminal Minds” assistant director.
“He has an issue, like an alcoholic,” Koch said. “And if he has an issue, he needs to say, ‘I paid a big price. I lost my job and I’m not going to let this happen again.’ That’s all he can do…Once we get this kind of apology, we all tend to forgive and forget.”