The top 10 best roles of Gerard Butler
On the occasion of the release of Criminal Squad: Pantera, a look back at the ten best roles of Gerard Butler, king of action films. The massive Scottish actor has established himself as the last guardian of a cinema that Hollywood no longer knows how to produce…
Gerard Butler occupies a somewhat special place in Hollywood. He has never worn spandex, does not chase $200 million films and has gradually built his little kingdom, reigning over the mid-budget action film – an endangered species. The release of Criminal Squad: Pantera recalls that the Scottish star releases productions with impressive regularity and has even achieved the feat of transforming some of his hits into franchises. It was well worth a look back at his most notable roles.
1. Nick O’Brien in Criminal Squad (2018)
“Big Nick” O’Brien perfectly represents Butler’s strength. Thanks to this borderline Los Angeles cop, the actor found THE role that combines all his registers: the raw power of 300the arched darkness of Let justice be doneand a vulnerability that it rarely exploits. With his washed-out look, stinking of alcohol and cigarettes, thick as Russell Crowe, he is completely fantastic. And his duo/duel with O’Shea Jackson Jr. sparks. What more could you ask for? A sequel which has just been released and which plays the ambiguity card even more…
2. James Ducat in Keepers (2018)
Who would have thought one day we would see Gerard Butler in a Huston-style psychological thriller? Very far from the explosions of Geostorm or shootings of Criminal Squadthe actor surprises in this drama inspired by the mysterious disappearance of the lighthouse keepers of the Flannan Islands. Three men discover a beached rowboat containing a chest full of gold… What begins as a realistic chronicle transforms into a moral fable (a Treasure of the Sierra Madre Scottish), where greed and paranoia will consume the characters. Butler, while restrained, is impressive and holds the frame against an exceptional Peter Mullan. The final scene, where his character begs to be drowned, is the great moment of tragic grace in his career.
3. Mike Banning in The Fall of the White House (2013)
In 2013 the White House seemed to be Hollywood’s favorite playground; White House Down and Channing Tatum facing The Fall of the White House and Gerard Butler. It was ultimately he who had the last word at the box office and in pop culture. His Mike Banning has become his James Bond, his Ethan Hunt, his Dominic Toretto – in short, an improbable franchise hero who condenses all his know-how, his ambition and his persona. An honest, professional cop, without fear or reproach. A lethal weapon.
4. Broddie Torrance in Mayday (2023)
Jean-François Richet offers Butler a role that seems written for him: an airline pilot finds himself forced to protect his passengers after landing in hostile territory. What could have been a simple act direct-to-video becomes, thanks to its duet with Mike Colter, a tense and very effective thriller. Above all, Richet refuses complacency and Butler is, here, not just a thick brute. He is a professional, driven by morality, as courageous as he is worn.
5. John Garrity in Greenland (2020)
After Geostorm Butler returned in a (post)apocalyptic film, but this time more down to earth and above all focused on humans. He leaves his eighties big arm costume in the closet to play a simple father in a polo shirt. No more punchlines or heroic rescues: just an ordinary guy running, afraid, and trying to protect his people. More sober, simpler, and surprisingly moving, Butler proved that he could shine even without nuclear explosions in the background of the frame.
6. Bob Viddick in Copshop (2021)
Joe Carnahan, who disavowed the final edit reworked by the producers, created a dry and crazy thriller, very 70s. If the film is full of memorable characters – special mention for Alexis Louder – it is Butler who wins the day. Here he finds his best villain role as a demonic hitman infiltrated in a police station alongside a crook (Frank Grillo) and a young recruit (Alexis Louder). Visibly delighted to be on the side of the bad guys, the actor composes a character as charismatic as he is disturbed.
7. Leonidas in 300 (2007)
This is Sparta! In one role (and especially one scream) Butler was propelled to fame. And even if Snyder’s film is more concerned with its visual effects than with the performances of its actors, Butler imposes his imperial and savage physical presence in the role of the Spartan Leonidas. Iconic. The actor will try to do it again in Gods of Egypt – in vain.
8. Stoik in Dragons (2010)
In the role of Stoick, a gruff but endearing Viking leader, Butler finds perhaps one of his best roles. His distinctive voice – with those R’s that roll like pebbles, his powerful bass – brings essential emotional depth to one of the best animated trilogies to hit the big screen recently.
9. Clyde Shelton in Let justice be done (2009)
This is a real nonsense, deliciously bad, tailor-made for cable channels and a rainy Sunday afternoon. Butler plays Clyde Shelton, a family man transformed into a relentless avenger. His tirade in front of the judge, where he goes from pleading to intimidation, is an anthology piece that is worth watching in itself. Outrageous, excessive, enjoyable, the film is also a good (or bad) example of the reactionary excesses which have sometimes threatened our favorite Scotsman… (we have spared you its very Catholic Machine Gun Preacher)
10. One Two in RocknRolla (2008)
None of Butler’s attempts at pure comedy will have really worked (who said Bounty Hunter ?). This Guy Ritchie film could be an exception. In the role of One Two (who lives at number 34 – it’s by these kinds of details that we recognize a Ritchie film), he sets the tone and shows all the facets of his talent. Cockney charm, humor, a touch of vulgarity and even… dancing – notably in a hilarious scene with Thandiwe Newton where the two compete in clumsiness. Faced with a massive gold cast (Tom Hardy, Idris Elba, Mark Strong), Butler stood out here as a more versatile actor than expected.
