Gerard James Butler[2] was born inPaisley,Scotland,[3] on 13 November 1969, the youngest of three children of Margaret and Edward Butler, abookmaker.[4][5][6] His family, which isCatholic, is ofIrish descent.[7][8] His family moved toMontreal,Quebec, Canada when he was six months old.[9][10] A year later, when his parents' marriage broke down, his mother left Montreal and returned to Scotland with Butler.[11]
Butler was head boy atSt Mirin's & St Margaret's High School in Paisley and won a place atUniversity of Glasgow School of Law.[12][13] He also attendedScottish Youth Theatre while a teenager. He did not see his father again until he was 16, when Edward Butler called to meet him at a Glasgow restaurant. After the meeting, Butler cried for hours, and recalled 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."[11]
As a student, he was the president of the university law society,[14] a position he later said he "kind of blagged my way into".[3] When Butler was 22, his father was diagnosed with cancer and died. He said 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]
Before his final year of law school, Butler took a year off to live inCalifornia—mostly inVenice Beach, where he held different jobs, travelled often, and, he says, drank heavily; at one point he was arrested for alcohol-related disorderly conduct. Describing his behaviour during that year, he recalled: "I was out of control, and justifying it with this idea that 'I'm young, this is life. This is me just being boisterous.' " After his time off in America, he returned to Scotland to finish his final year at law school.[3]
He had ear surgery as a child that left him with a mangled ear. He still suffers fromtinnitus and has hearing loss in his right ear.[16]
Career
Legal career and early acting career
Upon graduation, he took a position as a trainee lawyer at anEdinburgh law firm. However, he continued to stay out late drinking and frequently missed work. One week before he qualified as a lawyer, he was fired. At the age of 25, and an unqualified lawyer, he 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."[11]
Initially unable to win any acting roles, he worked in a variety of jobs including as a waiter, a telemarketer and a toy demonstrator at fairs. In London, he met an old friend from his teenage days in the Scottish Youth Theatre, who was now a London casting director. At that time, he was her boyfriend and her assistant. She took him to an audition forSteven Berkoff's play ofCoriolanus.[14] 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]
In London, Butler had various odd jobs until being cast by actor and directorSteven Berkoff (who later appeared alongside him inAttila (2001)) in a stage production ofCoriolanus. He was cast asEwan McGregor's character Renton in the stage adaptation ofTrainspotting, the same play that had inspired him to become an actor.[17] His film debut was asBilly Connolly's character's younger brother inMrs Brown (1997).[18]
His film career continued with small roles, first in theJames Bond filmTomorrow Never Dies (1997)[17] and thenRussell Mulcahy'sTale of the Mummy (1998). In 2000, Butler was cast in two breakthrough roles, the first being Attila the Hun in the American TV miniseriesAttila (2001). The film's producers wanted a known actor to play the part but eventually chose Butler.[19] He was cast as Dracula inDracula 2000 (2000).[20]
He then appeared inReign of Fire (2002)[21] as Creedy andLara Croft: Tomb Raider – The Cradle of Life (2003) as Terry Sheridan, alongsideAngelina Jolie. In the role of Andre Marek in the big-screen adaptation ofMichael Crichton's novelTimeline (2003),[22] Butler played an archaeologist who was sent back in time with a team of students to rescue a colleague.In 2003, directorJoel Schumacher was deciding on the principal casting for the filmThe Phantom of the Opera, a film adaptation of theAndrew Lloyd Webbermusical of the same name, and thought of Butler, whom he had seen earlier in the filmDracula 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 avocal coach.[23] He then did an acting audition with Schumacher, and a singing audition with Lloyd Webber, both of whom were impressed by his performance.[24] The film, and Butler's performance, received mixed reviews, though Butler was nominated for a Satellite Award for Best Actor.[citation needed]
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 atMichigan State University, he was a guest at theirMidnight Madness and homecoming American football game.[34]
Butler starred as Secret Service agent Mike Banning in the action thrillerOlympus Has Fallen (2013), opposite co-starsAaron Eckhart andMorgan Freeman. He said he broke two bones in his neck while shooting the film, but did not realize this until he had anMRI scan.[38] Butler reprised his voice role as Stoick inHow to Train Your Dragon 2 in 2014. Two years later, he reprised his role as Mike Banning in theOlympus Has Fallen sequelLondon Has Fallen and also portrayedSet inGods of Egypt. Late in 2018, Butler starred as submarine captain Commander Joe Glass of the USSArkansas, a Virginia class nuclear submarine, in the filmHunter Killer. He starred as Mike Banning again in the 2019 filmAngel Has Fallen and returned as the voice of Stoick inHow to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World, which was released the same year. After release delays due to COVID-19, Butler starred inGreenland in 2020. In January 2024, Butler was announced to reprise his role as Stoick in thelive-action remake ofHow to Train Your Dragon, which is set for a 2025 release.[39]
Butler stated in an interview that he no longer drinks alcohol.[45] In February 2012, it was announced that he had completed a course of treatment for substance abuse of painkillers at a rehabilitation facility.[46] He was concerned he had become too reliant on prescribed pain medication, which escalated after his surfing accident.[46]
In 2011, Butler played in a charity match forCeltic F.C., a football club he has supported since childhood.[42] A year later he represented Celtic in aHollywood film, starring as a "has-been" player inPlaying for Keeps.[47] He is also a supporter ofScotland rugby and has even been involved with promotional videos for the side including for the2023 Rugby World Cup.[48] In August 2013, he bought an equity stake in theJamaica Tallawahs cricket team, part of the LimacolCaribbean Premier League (CPL).[49] He has supported the charityMary's Meals since 2010.[50] He visited the international development charity's programme inLiberia in 2014.[51] In 2018, he attended a fundraiser gala organised byFriends of the Israel Defense Forces, which raised $60 million.[52] In November 2018, Butler's home was destroyed in theWoolsey Fire in California.[53]
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