With his thick Scottish brogue and manly scruff, Gerard Butler rose to big screen fame as an appealing hero in stylish, battle-oriented epics. His first big break came with the title role in Joel Schumacher’s “Phantom of the Opera” (2004) in which Butler sang his heart out, but no one really listened. The ones who did considered him a second-rate Michael Crawford, so Butler’s supposed star-making vehicle stalled. But it became quickly apparent that he really drew in the movie crowds when donning a shield and little else, charging into battle as a seemingly invincible warrior. Woman swooned
