Childhood & Early Life
Gerard James Butler was born on 13 November 1969, in Paisley, Renfrewshire, Scotland, to Edward Butler, a bookmaker, and Margaret Butler. He was raised in a very conservative and strict Roman Catholic family.
He went to ‘St Mirin's & St Margaret's High School,’ where he was a bright student and exhibited strong leadership qualities. He later pursued law at the ‘Glasgow University.’ Meanwhile, he enrolled himself at the ‘Scottish Youth Theatre’ during his teen years.
After graduating from law school, he took up a job as a trainee lawyer at an Edinburgh law firm. However, he was fired due to his frequent absence from work.
At the age of 25, he decided to relocate to London in order to pursue his dream of becoming famous. In London, he took up odd jobs to support himself as he could not land acting roles.
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Career
He made his first appearance in Steven Berkoff’s play ‘Coriolanus.’ Thereafter, he landed a role in the theatre adaptation of Irvine Welsh’s novel ‘Trainspotting.’
In 1997, he played the role of ‘Archie Brown’ in the ‘Oscar’ award-nominated and Golden Globe-winning British drama film ‘Mrs. Brown.’ The film was also screened at the 1997 ‘Cannes Film Festival.’
In 1998, he appeared in the British-American horror film ‘Tale of the Mummy,’ which was directed by Russell Mulcahy. The movie, which was set in Egypt, was shot in and around Egyptian excavation sites.
In 2000, he starred in the horror film ‘Dracula 2000,’ which was directed by Patrick Lussier. The film was a failure at the box office.
In 2002, he began to star in the TV miniseries ‘The Jury,’ which was broadcast on ‘ITV’ network. In the series, he played the role of ‘Johnnie Donne.’
In 2003, he made an appearance in the action film ‘Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life,’ which was directed by Jan de Bont. In the film, he played the role of ‘Terry Sheridan.’
In 2004, he played the role of ‘The Phantom’ in the Academy Award-nominated film ‘The Phantom of the Opera,’ which was directed by Joel Schumacher. The movie received mixed reviews from film critics.
In 2006, he gained fame and popularity for his portrayal of ‘King Leonidas’ in the film ‘300,’ which was directed by Zack Snyder. The film was based on a comic book series of the same name. The film served as a breakthrough in his career and proved to be a turning point in his life.
On December 2007, he starred in the American tragedy romance film ‘P.S. I Love You,’ which was directed by Richard LaGravenese. The film was based on Cecelia Ahern's novel of the same name.
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In 2008, he starred in the Australian adventure-fantasy film ‘Nim's Island,’ which was directed by Jennifer Flackett and Mark Levin. The film was a huge hit at the box office.
In 2009, he starred opposite Katherine Heigl in the romantic comedy film ‘The Ugly Truth,’ which was directed by Robert Luketic. Though it received negative reviews, the film was a commercial success.
In 2010, he starred opposite Jennifer Aniston in the romantic action comedy film ‘The Bounty Hunter,’ which was directed by Andy Tennant. The film was not well-received by the critics.
On March 2010, he voiced ‘Stoick the Vast’ in the 3D animated film ‘How to Train Your Dragon,’ which was directed by Chris Sanders and Dean DeBlois. The film was a huge commercial success. He went on to voice ‘Stoick the Vast’ in the film’s sequels, ‘How to Train Your Dragon 2’ (2014) and ‘How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World’ (2019).
In 2012, he starred in the biographical film ‘Chasing Mavericks,’ which was based on the life of surfer Jay Moriarity. The film was not well-received by the critics
In 2013, he was cast to play ‘Mike Banning,’ a secret service agent, in the blockbuster action thriller film ‘Olympus Has Fallen.’ He went on to reprise the role as ‘Mike Banning’ in the film’s sequels, ‘London Has Fallen’ (2016) and ‘Angel Has Fallen’ (2019).
He reprised his role as ‘King Leonidas’ in the 2014 period drama film ‘300: Rise of an Empire.’ In 2017, he played a satellite designer in the successful movie ‘Geostorm,’ which was directed and produced by Dean Devlin.
In 2018, he was seen in movies, such as ‘Den of Thieves,’ ‘The Vanishing,’ and ‘Hunter Killer,’ all of which were moderately successful at the box office.
In 2018, he was cast to play an important role in an independent sports comedy drama film titled ‘All-Star Weekend.’ The following year, he was cast to play ‘Jeff’ in an American thriller film titled ‘Greenland.’
Major Works
He appeared in the super-hit film ‘300.’ The film was received well by the audience, and had the 24th largest box-office opening. It went on to gross a whopping $456,068,181 at the box office. Its sequel ‘300: Rise of an Empire’ also became a blockbuster, grossing a whopping $337.6 million.
He played a voice role in the film ‘How to Train Your Dragon.’ The film became the fifth-highest grossing animated film of 2010. The film earned a massive $494,878,759 at the box office. Its sequels ‘How to Train Your Dragon 2’ and ‘How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World’ earned $621.5 million and $519.8 million respectively.
