Gerard James Butler (born 13 November 1969) is a Scottish 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). He garnered critical acclaim for his breakthrough work as the lead in Joel Schumacher’s 2004 film adaptation of the musical The Phantom of the Opera. In 2007, Butler gained worldwide 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 as a voice actor in How to Train Your Dragon (2010).
Has dark brown hair.
He is Scottish, but is of partial Irish ancestry. He has also mentioned that, because of this, his family does not have a tartan.
First stage role was in Coriolanus. Poked in the eye with a wooden stake during rehearsals for the play.
On the first day of shooting his film debut in _Mrs. Brown (1997)_ he had to run naked into a freezing sea and, as a result, developed hypothermia. Later during the filming, he saved a young boy from drowning in the river Tay and received a Certificate Of Bravery from The Royal Humane Society.
Graduated from Glasgow University with a law degree
Did not see his father from the age of 2 until he turned 16.
His eyes are grey/green in color but often appear blue on screen.
Was once rumored to be the next James Bond (after Pierce Brosnan). [April 2001]
Was confirmed for a role in Mindhunters (2004), but chose to drop out of it because of his prior commitment to Timeline (2003). The filming schedules of the two films overlapped. Jonny Lee Miller with whom Butler co-starred in Dracula 2000 (2000) stepped in to take his Mindhunter role.
Was a presenter at the 2003 MTV Europe Music Awards with fellow Scotsman Billy Boyd.
Was at one time the lead singer for a Scottish rock band named Speed, although music eventually became his second love after acting.
Has done five films in which his character’s name is in the title: Dracula 2000 (2000), Attila (2001/I) (TV), The Phantom of the Opera (2004), Beowulf & Grendel (2005), and _Burns (2006)_.
Cried while talking about the Phantom’s loneliness to The Phantom of the Opera (2004) director Joel Schumacher.
Had the rock-and-roll voice that Andrew Lloyd Webber always wanted to hear as the Phantom.
Jokes about preferring the mask side of his face to the regular side of his face.
Sang in a rock band whilst training to be a lawyer.
He has quickly gained a reputation as one of the nicest actors around, as he always takes time to socialize with fans and hangs out with crew members as much as co-stars on film sets.
When he auditioned for the role of Aslan the Lion in the Walden Media/Disney production of ‘Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe, The (2001)_ he asked, “This isn’t going to be like the BBC puppet Aslan, right? Because if so I’m leaving right now.”.
He has a legal degree from Glasgow University, but gave up on that career after being fired from a law firm just one week before he was qualified to practice law.
Was chosen as the most attractive man of 2005 by Hello! Magazine
Prefers to be called Gerry. He does this because he notices that many people (especially Americans) struggle with pronouncing “Gerard”.
Divides his time between London, New York and Los Angeles.
Chosen by Empire magazine as one of the 100 Sexiest Stars in film history (#10). [2007].
His favorite actor is Christian Bale.
Is constantly trying to quit smoking employing the use of hypnotism, patches, lasers and most general methods. He did quit for six months while filming 300, but started again towards the end of filming.
Along with Ben Stiller, Demi Moore, Susan Sarandon, and director Paul Haggis, he visited a camp for internally displaced persons managed by Sean Penn and his Jenkins-Penn Humanitarian Relief Organization in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. [April 2010]
