LAS VEGAS — Mel Gibson has directed a Mark Wahlberg movie shot in Southern Nevada. He wants a sequel to that experience, maybe a franchise.

“Mark Wahlberg is an industrious guy and great to work with. The production experience in Vegas was topnotch,” Gibson said in a text Sunday, a day after attending UFC 313 at T-Mobile Arena. Gibson sat alongside FBI Director Kash Patel and longtime friend and business associate Darin Feinstein. “I am certain Vegas will accommodate Mark in a big way. I look forward to coming back for big-budget movies.”

Patel is a Las Vegas resident. Feinstein has many business interests in town, including Red Mercury Entertainment and its stage shows “MJ Live” at Harrah’s Showroom and the Prince tribute “Purple Reign” at V Theater at Miracle Mile Shops at Planet Hollywood.

Gibson directed “Flight Plan,” which filmed some scenes at Mesquite Airport. Wahlberg stars as a pilot carrying an Air Marshal (Michelle Dockery) and a fugitive (Topher Grace) across Alaska.

The film is the latest in Wahlberg’s efforts to establish a long-term film industry presence in Las Vegas. He’s filmed “Family Plan” here, and is also using Las Vegas-area locations in the sequel, “Family Plan 2.”

A Las Vegas resident, Wahlberg endorses and promotes the Senate Bill 238, in which Sony Pictures Entertainment and Warner Bros. Discovery would partner in a 31-acre studio campus in Summerlin. The studios are seeking $80 million in tax credits, stating that about 18,000 industry jobs would be created. The bill is being reviewed by the Nevada Legislature.

Gibson’s time in Las Vegas was unrelated to film work. The star of such epics as “Mad Max,” “Lethal Weapon” and “Braveheart” likes the fights: “It was great to be at UFC with some great Americans.”

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