Gerard Butler

Biography

Gerard James Butler (born 13 November 1969 in Paisley, Scotland) is a British actor and film producer, best known for leading action films and for playing King Leonidas in 300. After studying law, he turned to acting in the mid-1990s. His career spans genre cinema, the movie musical and television, and he has been a steady presence in action films through the 2010s.

The youngest of three children, he spent his first months in Montreal before his mother took him back to Scotland. He studied law at the University of Glasgow, where he was president of the university law society, and after a brief spell as a trainee lawyer he moved to London to pursue acting. He held a string of odd jobs there until the director Steven Berkoff cast him in a stage production of Coriolanus. A stage adaptation of Trainspotting followed. His film debut came in Mrs Brown (1997), directed by John Madden, and he soon had small parts in Tomorrow Never Dies (1997).

His move into leading roles came in 2000 with Dracula 2000, in which he played the vampire, and with the miniseries Attila (2001). He then appeared in Lara Croft: Tomb Raider – The Cradle of Life (2003) alongside Angelina Jolie. For Joel Schumacher's The Phantom of the Opera (2004), he took singing lessons and trained his voice for months. Wider fame came with Zack Snyder's 300 (2006). He then alternated romantic dramas such as P.S. I Love You (2007) with thrillers like Law Abiding Citizen (2009), and later led the Olympus Has Fallen series. He also voiced the character Stoick in the animated How to Train Your Dragon films, and in 2016 played Seth in Gods of Egypt.

Away from film, he sang in a rock band as a young man. His legacy rests mainly on popular action and genre cinema, with a filmography that is uneven but consistent. He remains active, with his career continuing in action and animated projects.

Key films

• 300 (2006): as King Leonidas, the role that brought him international recognition.
• The Phantom of the Opera (2004): as Erik, the Phantom, in Joel Schumacher's musical adaptation, after an intensive vocal training period.
• Lara Croft: Tomb Raider – The Cradle of Life (2003): a co-star opposite Angelina Jolie in one of his early big-budget action films.
• Law Abiding Citizen (2009): a family man who seeks revenge after a murder, in a dark thriller.
• Tomorrow Never Dies (1997): a supporting role in the James Bond film, one of his first screen appearances.