AceShowbiz -

Jodie Foster has stepped up to defend troubled actor Mel Gibson amidst his nasty custody battle against ex-girlfriend Oksana Grigorieva. The 47-year-old actress told More magazine, "When you love a friend, you don't abandon them when they are struggling."

Jodie, who has worked with Mel in 1994 film "Maverick" and recently reunited with him for "The Beaver", admitted that "Mel is an undeniably gifted actor and director." She then added, "But more importantly, he is and has been a true and loyal friend. I hope I can help him get through this dark moment."

Jodie also called Mel the "easiest, nicest person" she has ever worked with. "The second I met him, I said, 'I will love this man for the rest of my life'," the mother of two further stated.

Mel has been entangled in the legal battle against Oksana over their illegitimate daughter Lucia. The legal battle has been filled with Mel accusing Oksana of extortion, as well as numbers of outed recordings featuring Mel launching a racist, profanity-laced tirade aimed at the singer.

According to TMZ, Oksana will have her lawyers, Martin Garbus and Daniel Horowitz, appearing on "TODAY" on Wednesday, September 22 in a bid to turn around her PR image. The site also mentioned that the lawyers will also talk about $15 million settlement from Mel which she turned down.