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Gerard Butler

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Not to be confused with Gerald Butler.

Gerard Butler
Gerard Butler at the 2011 Berlin International Film Festival
Born
Gerard James Butler

(1969-11-13) 13 November 1969 (age 55)
Paisley, Scotland
OccupationActor
Years active1997–present

Gerard James Butler (born 13 November 1969) is a British actor who has appeared on film, stage, and television. A trained lawyer, Butler turned to acting in the mid-1990s with small roles in productions such as the James Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies (1997), which he followed with steady work on television, most notably in the American miniseries Attila (2001). In 2003, he played André Marek in the adaptation of Michael Crichton's Timeline. He garnered critical acclaim for his work as the lead in Joel Schumacher's 2004 film adaptation of the musical The Phantom of the Opera. In 2007, Butler gained recognition through his portrayal of King Leonidas in the film 300. Since then, he has appeared in projects including P.S. I Love You (2007), Nim's Island (2008), RocknRolla (2008), The Ugly Truth (2009), Gamer (2009), Law Abiding Citizen (2009), The Bounty Hunter (2010), and Olympus Has Fallen (2013). He also appeared as a voice actor in How to Train Your Dragon (2010).

Early life

Butler was born in Paisley in Renfrewshire, Scotland,[1] the youngest of three children of Margaret and Edward Butler, a bookmaker.[2][3][4] Of Irish descent,[5] he was brought up in a strict Roman Catholic family.[6]

Butler spent most of the first year of his life in Montreal, Quebec.[7][8] His mother returned to Scotland with him, from Quebec, when her marriage broke down, when Gerard was aged 18 months.[9] He attended High School in Paisley, rose to position of Prefect (and later Head Boy) at St Mirin's & St Margaret's High School and achieved respectable grades - good enough to win a place at Glasgow University to study law.[10][11] He also attended Scottish Youth Theatre while a teenager. He did not see his father again until he was 16 years old, when Edward Butler called to meet him at a Glasgow restaurant. After this meeting, Butler cried for hours, and recalled of it later:

"That emotion showed me how much pain can sit in this body of yours; pain and sorrow that you don’t know you have until it is unleashed."[9]

Butler became close to his father after this reunion. Around the same time, he also accepted Glasgow University's offer to study law. During his time as a student, he became the President of the Law Society[12] and sang in a rock band called Speed.[13][14]

While a 22 year old student, his father was diagnosed with cancer and died. This caused Butler's lifestyle to spiral out of control. He would say of this period in his life:

"I had gone from a 16-year-old who couldn’t wait to grasp life to a 22-year-old who didn’t care if he died in his sleep."[15]

Upon graduation, he won a position as a trainee lawyer at an Edinburgh law firm. However, his lifestyle remained unrestrained and he frequently missed work due to his partying antics. One week before he qualified as a lawyer, he was fired.

At the age of 25, and an unqualified lawyer, Butler moved to London to pursue his dream of becoming famous. He admitted:

"When I started out, I'm not sure I was actually in it for the right reasons. I wanted very much to be famous."[9]

Unable to win any acting roles immediately, he was forced to accept blue collar jobs, which included being a waiter, a telemarketer and a demonstrator of how toys work at fairs. Whilst in London, he met an old friend from his teenage days in the Scottish Youth Theatre, who was now a London casting agent. At that time, he was her boyfriend and her assistant. She took him to an audition for Steven Berkoff's play of Coriolanus.[12] The director said of Butler's audition:

"When he read, he had such vigour and enthusiasm – so much that it made the other actors seem limp – that I decided to cast him in the ensemble."[15]

Now aged 27, Butler had his first professional acting job. Less than a year later, he won a part in a theater adaptation of Trainspotting, which he performed at the Edinburgh Festival. By age 30, Butler decided to move to Los Angeles to make it in the big league; there he won parts in Dracula 2000, Tomb Raider 2, Dear Frankie, and Phantom of the Opera. The director Vadim Jean said:

"I have never seen anybody work so hard to make their career happen."[15]

Despite the early yearnings for fame, Butler would tell London's Daily Telegraph in a 2009 interview, when aged 39:

"I did expect to succeed and I did have faith that I would. In reality, though, it has turned out to be something very different to what I wanted. It’s the work and not the adulation that has proved to be the most fulfilling."[15]

Career

In London, Butler held a series of odd jobs until being cast by actor and director Steven Berkoff (who later appeared alongside him in Attila (2001)) in a stage production of Coriolanus. He was cast as Ewan McGregor's character Renton in the stage adaptation of Trainspotting, the same play that had inspired him to become an actor. His film debut was as Billy Connolly's character's younger brother in Mrs. Brown (1997).

His film career continued with small roles, first in the James Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies (1997) and then Russell Mulcahy's Tale of the Mummy (1998). In 2000, Butler was cast in two breakthrough roles, the first being Attila the Hun in USA film Attila (2001/I) (TV). The film's producers wanted a known actor to play the part but kept coming back to Butler's screen tests and decided he was their man. He was cast as Dracula in Dracula 2000 (2000).

He then appeared in Reign of Fire (2002) as Creedy and Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life (2003) as Terry Sheridan, alongside Angelina Jolie. In the role of Andre Marek in the big-screen adaptation of Michael Crichton's novel Timeline (2003), Butler played an archaeologist who was sent back in time with a team of students to rescue a colleague. In 2003, director Joel Schumacher was deciding on the principal casting for the film The Phantom of the Opera, a film adaptation of the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical of the same name, and thought of Butler, whom he had seen earlier in the film Dracula 2000, to play the title character. Butler, who had had no musical experience other than singing in a rock band while he was studying to be a lawyer, was surprised at the interest, but immediately began taking singing lessons with a vocal coach.[16] He then did an acting audition with Schumacher, and a singing audition with Lloyd Webber, both of whom were impressed by his performance.[17] Despite the film receiving mixed reviews, Butler was praised for his performance.

Other projects that followed include Dear Frankie (2005), The Game of Their Lives (2005) and Beowulf & Grendel (2005).

Gerard Butler on the set of the film, The Bounty Hunter, 2010

In 2007, he starred as Spartan King Leonidas in the Warner Bros. production 300, which is often described as his breakthrough role.[18] Butler, who said he "wanted to look really strong" in the film, trained with a high-intensity workout for four months prior to the film's shooting.[19]

In 2007, he also appeared in Butterfly on a Wheel co-starring Pierce Brosnan and Maria Bello, which aired on network TV under the title Shattered, and in the romantic comedy P.S. I Love You with Hilary Swank. In 2008, he appeared in Nim's Island and RocknRolla. In 2009, he starred in the Mark Neveldine/Brian Taylor film Gamer, The Ugly Truth and Law Abiding Citizen, which he also co-produced. In 2010 he starred in the action/comedy The Bounty Hunter with Jennifer Aniston, and did a voice-over in the 2010 animated film How to Train Your Dragon as Stoick the Vast.

On 15 and 16 October 2010, thanks to the popularity of his role as Spartan King Leonidas and the use of his lines during athletic events at Michigan State University, he was a guest at their Midnight Madness and homecoming football game, respectively.

On 18 December 2011, while filming Chasing Mavericks, Butler was hospitalized after he was pulled under big waves. A safety patrolman spotted Butler and quickly rushed to his aid. He was taken to Stanford University Medical Center where he was observed and then later released.[20]

On 19 August 2011, NME reported that while filming Playing For Keeps, Butler was writing songs and in the process of recording an album. Marilyn Manson, Jack Black, and Johnny Depp were said to be advising him on becoming a rock star.[21] However, in a 2013 interview with Parade, when asked if he had spoken with Manson or Depp about Rock music, Butler stated that "I’ve never had conversations with Marilyn Manson or Johnny Depp. Though any conversation with either of them would be awesome!" [22]

Butler starred in the action thriller Olympus Has Fallen, which was released on March 22, 2013 and co-stars Aaron Eckhart & Morgan Freeman. While filming Olympus Has Fallen, Butler says he broke two bones in his neck, but did not realise until he had an MRI scan done.[23]

Personal life

Butler has been open in interviews about struggling with alcoholism. In February 2012, Butler's publicist announced that Butler had completed a course of treatment for substance abuse of pain killers at a rehab-centre.[24] This was after Butler was concerned he was too reliant on prescribed pain relief medication which escalated when he was involved in a surfing incident before Christmas 2011.[24][25][26]

A fan of the Glasgow football club Celtic and having played a charity match with them in 2011, Butler regularly attended Celtic Park as a supporter, but has found that moving to Hollywood can be a problem when trying to keep up with the results due to the time difference between Los Angeles and Glasgow.[27]

Filmography

Butler at the 2011 Toronto International Film Festival
Year Title Role Notes
1997 Mrs. Brown Archie Brown
1997 Tomorrow Never Dies Leading Seaman
1998 Tale of the Mummy Burke
1998 Fast Food Jacko
1998 Little White Lies Peter TV movie
1998 The Young Person's Guide to Becoming a Rock Star Marty Claymore TV series
1999 The Cherry Orchard Yasha
1999 One More Kiss Sam TV movie
1999 Lucy Sullivan Is Getting Married Gus TV series
2000 Dracula 2000 Count Dracula/Judas Iscariot
2001 Harrison's Flowers Chris Kumac
2001 An Unsuitable Job for a Woman Tim Bolton TV series
2001 Attila Attila the Hun TV miniseries
2001 Jewel of the Sahara Captain Charles Belamy Short
2001 Please! Peter Short
2001 The Jury Johnnie Donne TV miniseries
2002 Shooters Jackie Junior
2002 Reign of Fire Creedy
2003 Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life Terry Sheridan
2003 Timeline André Marek
2004 The Phantom of the Opera Erik, Phantom
2005 Beowulf & Grendel Beowulf
2005 The Game of Their Lives Frank Borghi
2005 Shadow Company James Ashcroft (voice)
2005 Dear Frankie The Stranger
2007 300 King Leonidas
2007 Butterfly on a Wheel Neil Randall
2007 P.S. I Love You Gerry Kennedy
2008 Nim's Island Jack Rusoe / Alex Rover
2008 RocknRolla One Two
2009 Tales of the Black Freighter The Captain (voice)
2009 The Ugly Truth Mike Chadway
2009 Gamer Kable / John Tillman
2009 Law Abiding Citizen Clyde Shelton
2009 Saturday Night Live Host / Various Guest Host 17 October 2009
2010 How to Train Your Dragon Stoick the Vast (voice)
2010 The Bounty Hunter Milo Boyd
2011 Coriolanus Tullus Aufidius
2011 Machine Gun Preacher Sam Childers
2012 Chasing Mavericks Frosty Hesson
2012 Playing for Keeps George
2013 Movie 43 Chaun
2013 Olympus Has Fallen Mike Banning
2014 How to Train Your Dragon 2 Stoick the Vast (voice) Pre-production

References

  1. ^ "300 Things We Didn't Know About Gerard Butler". Esquire.com. 13 June 2009. Retrieved 9 June 2010.
  2. ^ Fox, Chloe (20 July 2009). "Gerard Butler interview for The Ugly Truth". London: The Telegraph. Retrieved 16 November 2010.
  3. ^ "Gerard Butler in Wrath Of Gods". 15 March 2010. Retrieved 24 April 2010.
  4. ^ "Drawn Together: Gerard Butler & Craig Ferguson". Cineplex Movie Blog. 15 March 2010. Retrieved 24 April 2010.
  5. ^ "Gerard Butler Apologises for Irish Accent". YouTube. 26 January 2009. Retrieved 7 May 2012.
  6. ^ "Gerard Butler". Hello magazine. Retrieved 11 May 2010. As a youngster the star grew up in a strict Catholic household where a good education was considered paramount to success, however, he failed horribly.
  7. ^ "Gerard Butler". mysticbliss.net. Retrieved 24 April 2010.
  8. ^ Daily News. "Gerard Butler breaks the mold"
  9. ^ a b c [1][dead link]
  10. ^ Stewart, Stephen (28 March 2010). "Gerard Butler's school pal on how Hollywood star phoned to grovel after branding her a flirt on TV". Daily Record. Retrieved 1 February 2013.
  11. ^ Hedegaard, Erik (April 2010). "Gerry the Sinner, Gerry the Saint". Men's Journal. Retrieved 1 February 2013.
  12. ^ a b "Gerard Butler | Paisley Scotland". Paisley.org.uk. Retrieved 7 May 2012.
  13. ^ "Gerard Butler Biography". Gerardjamesbutler.co.uk. Retrieved 7 May 2012.
  14. ^ LadyThrills (14 October 2007). "LadyThrills.com: Gerard Butler". Ladythrills.blogspot.co.uk. Retrieved 7 May 2012.
  15. ^ a b c d Stars and Stories (20 July 2009). "Gerard Butler interview for The Ugly Truth". London: Telegraph. Retrieved 7 May 2012.
  16. ^ Gerard Butler phantom of the opera Stella Papamichael, 2004
  17. ^ Gerard Butler – Phantom of the Opera interview, Paul Fischer, femail.com.au, 2004
  18. ^ Law Abiding Citizen Trailer: Gerard Butler Is Still in Search of an Identity, Mark Graham, New York Magazine Vulture blog, 14 August 2009
  19. ^ Spartan Workout Secrets from the Star of 300, Men's Health
  20. ^ Gerard Butler (20 December 2011). "Gerard Butler OK After Big-Wave Surfing Mishap". E! Online. Retrieved 7 May 2012.
  21. ^ "Marilyn Manson advises Gerard Butler on becoming a rock star - NME". {{cite web}}: Text "accessdate 3 September 2012" ignored (help)
  22. ^ "Gerard Butler on Singing, Fame, and the Secret Service". {{cite web}}: Text "accessdate 25 March 2013" ignored (help)
  23. ^ "Gerard Butler broke neck bones". 27 March 2013.
  24. ^ a b Gerard Butler Completes Stint in Rehab People. Retrieved 25 February 2012
  25. ^ Gerard Butler suffers Mav's hold-down ESPN, Retrieved 25 February 2012
  26. ^ Butler cleans up after surf-accident drug dependence Half Moon Bay Review, Retrieved 25 February 2012
  27. ^ I miss going to see Celtic play, admits Hollywood hunk Gerard Butler Daily Record. Retrieved 4 October 2011
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