300's Butler Got His Bumps

300's Butler Got His Bumps


July 25, 2006

Sci Fi Wire

Gerard Butler, who stars as King Leonidas in Zack Snyder's upcoming 300, based on Frank Miller's graphic novel, told SCI FI Wire that he and his co-stars suffered bumps and bruises while sword-fighting wearing little besides a leather loincloth. "There was a few injuries," Butler said in an interview at Comic-Con International in San Diego over the weekend. "At times it seemed like every day somebody else was being carted off to the hospital. There was a couple stunt men got injured. I don't know about you [turning to co-star David Wenham], but I pulled my groin at one point. And then I got drop foot, and I was flopping around, my foot was flopping around, for like six days, and then I damaged my shoulders from just doing too much, basically overdoing it."

300 tells the story of the 480 B.C. Battle of Thermopylae, in which Leonidas, the king of Sparta, led his small army against the advancing Persians; the battle is said to have inspired the creation of the world's first democracy.

Butler added that he and his co-stars underwent rigorous training in the use of ancient weapons. "What killed us the most were the swords and the shields and the spears," he said. "And that was just, like, doing routine after routine and doing it again and again, to get that strength and that stamina and also to get that form. To really look like you knew what you were doing. So there was that, and that went on for months and months, and we'd be doing that between shots, jumping off in the gym with all the stunt guys. But it was great, I mean it was a lot of fun. Especially the early days, when we were all like pretty sh--ty at it." 300 opens in March 2007.

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