Ron Howard: Why Accepting An Oscar From Mel Gibson Was 'Nerve-Racking' (VIDEO)

When Ron Howard won an Academy Award for Best Director for his film A Beautiful Mind, he wasn't just nervous about delivering his acceptance speech. As the acclaimed actor and director revealed on HuffPost Live, Howard was also anxious about the man who presented him with the award.

"I had directed Mel Gibson a few years earlier. We all know Mel can be a little reckless, he's his own man," Howard said to host Josh Zepps. "I loved working with him on Ransom--he's an unbelievably talented guy. But he was giving the best director award that year, he was announcing it. He came up to me about three days before and he said, 'I'm going to give you an Oscar, buddy.' And I said, 'how do you know?' And he said, 'Oh believe me, I know.'"

Howard explained that Gibson's certainty worried him. "Now Mel is just wild enough to just go rogue. So when he actually did call my name--a very proud moment--but I turned around and I made him show me the card. And lo and behold, it did have my name on it, thankfully."

Watch the full conversation on HuffPost Live.