“1992” springs from the LA riots following the Not Guilty verdicts on the white police officers who were filmed brutally beating Rodney King.

For South Central native Tyrese Gibson, it’s a real-life flashback – with a twist.

“As you can imagine, when you’re from South Central, you’re going to get every phone call about movies being made in South Central. And it doesn’t always make sense for you, just because you’re from there,” Gibson, 45, said in a Zoom interview.

“1992” contrasts two completely opposite fathers and sons.  Gibson’s Mercer is protective as he attempts to bond with his teenager Antoine (Christopher A’mmanuel). “That father-son component was very important. There’s not enough of those images I feel,” Gibson said.

In vivid contrast Lowell (Ray Liotta in his final film role) is a sadistic thug with a merciless killer crew who dominates and is dismissive of his adult son (Scott Eastwood).

“Ray and Scott decide,” Gibson explained, “while everybody’s mad and the police department’s fully distracted, ‘Let’s go break in a warehouse, do a heist and steal $50 million in platinum bars.’

“It’s a movie most people would like and it’s very exciting to be here for a film that was supposed to go straight to streaming.  They tried to release it in February — only the trailer dropped and did 100 million views on all social media platforms!”

That’s when “1992” won this Friday’s nationwide theatrical release. “I’m blown away man. It was the Little Engine That Could,” he marveled.

As for working with Liotta, “I remember he was mean. I remember that I was told, ‘Just give him some space. Don’t try and socialize with him and be friendly with the chummy-chummy’ and all that. He just wants to do his job, stay in character. And if your character doesn’t get along with his character, he’s not gonna want to be around you.’

“My son, played by Christopher, he’s been telling everybody that Ray didn’t speak to him for the first two weeks of the film.”

Is that approach Gibson’s as well?

“No, my approach is not Method. But I’m not going to be on the set cracking jokes and having my usual good time when Ray has set the tone. I’d feel like I’m being disrespectful or disrupting his actual process.”

The riot scenes where Mercer desperately searches for his son, vividly capture the chaos and destruction. How was it filming a fictional version of his life?

“Triggering, very triggering. I won’t call it nightmares. It was just like, it sounds like this. You don’t have to act it. Just react. Because I’ve already experienced this.

“I remember the smells, the confusion. I remember the urgency around everything that was going on.”

“1992” opens Friday