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Gerard James "Gerry" Butler (born November 13, 1969) is a Scottish actor and singer.

Early life

Born in Glasgow, Scotland to Margaret and Edward Butler (both having mainly Irish ancestry), Gerard is the youngest of three children. He spent the first few years of his life in Montreal before returning to Paisley, Scotland after his parents' separation. He grew up with his mother, who remarried a few years later. He had no contact with his father until he was age 16. He studied law at Glasgow University, where he served as President of the school's Law Society, and worked as a trainee solicitor after graduation. He spent the majority of his time as a lawyer feeling depressed and drinking. After being fired from his job he began acting. He has since sobered up and has not touched a drop of alcohol for over 9 years. While working as a lawyer, he sang with a rock band called Speed. They never recorded any of their songs. He was in a film called the Phantom Of The Opera in which he played the phantom, which kick started his career and became his 'claim to fame'.

Despite phony claims, he has never been married or engaged and keeps his private life private.

Career

His first acting roles were in the stage plays Coriolanus and Trainspotting,[1] after which he landed his first film role in Mrs. Brown (1997). That same year he appeared in Tomorrow Never Dies, with his first major role being the title character in Dracula 2000 (2000). The movie Tomb Raider (2001) in which Butler starred opposite Angelina Jolie was one that put him on the map, but his breakthrough came when he played the title role of Attila in the United States television serial Attila (TV Miniseries) (2001). He also appeared in the United Kingdom television serial The Jury.

He began taking formal singing lessons before he was even cast for the title role in Joel Schumacher's film rendition of Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Phantom of the Opera, training for hours a day from January of 2003 to June of 2004. He became very close to his co-star Emmy Rossum, whom he sees as a little sister.

While filming the movie Mrs. Brown in Scotland with Dame Judi Dench and Billy Connolly, he was enjoying a picnic with his mother near the River Tay when they heard the shouts of a young boy who had been swimming with a friend who was in trouble. Butler jumped into the river and consequently saved the young boy from drowning. He received a "Certificate of Bravery" from the Royal Humane Society. He felt he only did what anyone in the situation would have done.

Butler recently completed filming 300, an adaptation of the Frank Miller graphic novel (also called 300) based on the heroism of 300 elite Spartan warriors at the ancient battle of Thermopylae in Greece where he portrays the Spartan King Leonidas. Filming took place from October 2005 - January 2006 in Montreal.

Butler has grey-green eyes. He prefers to be called "Gerry" rather than "Gerard" (IPA pronunciation:  ; not ). Butler's home base is in London, although he does spend time in Los Angeles and New York City.

Recent events

Butterfly on a Wheel is in post production and is slated for a 2007 release. The film co-stars Pierce Brosnan and Maria Bello, which was filmed in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

He is currently filming P.S., I Love You opposite Hilary Swank and Lisa Kudrow. In the film, he portrays Gerry, a man who leaves messages for his wife (Swank) after his death, to help her face the world without him. Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Kathy Bates also star.

Filmmaker Andrew Douglas, of "The Amityville Horror" remake fame, has signed on to direct the Screen Gems project titled "Priest," a post-apocalyptic horror western based on a comic book by Min-Woo Hyung. Butler will star as a warrior priest who hunts down vampires. Sony Pictures will distribute the film, which is scheduled to start production in early 2007.

Partial filmography

• Priest (2007)
• P.S., I Love You (2007)
• Therese Raquin (2007)
• Butterfly on a Wheel (2007)
• 300 (2007)
• Beowulf and Grendel (2006)
• The Game of Their Lives (2005)
• The Phantom of the Opera (2004)
• Dear Frankie (2004)
• Timeline (2003)
• Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life (2003)
• Reign of Fire (2002)
• Shooters (2002)
• Tomb Raider (2001)
• Attila (TV Miniseries) (2001)
• Dracula 2000 (2000)
• Harrison's Flowers (2000)
• The Cherry Orchard (1999)
• One More Kiss (1999)
• Please! (1999)
• Tale of the Mummy (1998)
• Tomorrow Never Dies (1997)
• Mrs. Brown (1997)

External links

• Gerard Butler (Dot) Net - Officially Unofficial Fan Site
• Deutsche Fansite Seite über Gerard Butler

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