Butler’s passionate about action
Gerard Butler has returned to the Indian screens with his latest flick Olympus Has Fallen. In the high-octane action thriller, the actor plays a disgraced former presidential guard, and headlines a cast comprising Morgan Freeman and Aaron Eckhart.
“When the role of Agent Mike Banning was offered to me, the first thing I thought to myself was, how do I make this role fresh and terrifying,” said Gerard.
Referring to how he tried to relate to, and make his character convincing, Gerard said, “Ultimately, you want to take the audience on a journey to a character’s heart. When I was doing 300, I was acting like there was no tomorrow. The question is, how do you honour and show immense respect for who this character is? The hero’s journey is fascinating to watch, and this is what I prepared for.”
Gerard said he’s always “hungry for adventure” and that Olympus Has Fallen has been an adventure of the best kind, especially since it’s helmed by director Antoine Fuqua.
“I first got to know of Antoine when I was up for the role of Lancelot in King Arthur. I flew to Los Angeles from London. On the flight back, I got a call saying that I hadn’t got the role. I later told Antoine that I was angry about it, but then we started to collaborate on other roles. Antoine knows how to portray darkness and violence and knows how to portray both in a grand and witty way in his movies. He is a great director,” Gerard shared.
Gerard said, not just the director, the script of the film was pretty great as well. That, and the cast. “People really wanted to work with Antoine, so Aaron came on board, and then Melissa Leo and then Morgan Freeman and Angela Bassett. And it didn’t stop there. We have Ashley Judd, Dylan McDermott, Robert Forster, Cole Hauser and Rick Yune. We had this incredible cast,” he added.
From action (300), romance (P.S. I Love You) and comedy (The Ugly Truth), Gerard’s tried his hand at many genres of films, and he explained why: “Action is a passion for me, it’s the space where I get to do exactly what I want. I’m currently enjoying where I am (in the industry) and I believe in taking life as it comes.”
Music is another passion of course, and Gerard confirmed recent reports which have said that he’s got some help from Johnny Depp. “Yes, I was actually writing a few songs at that time (when I met Johnny Depp) and he and I have jammed a few times before. That’s how he introduced me to Marilyn Manson and Jack Black,” he said.
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