Gerard Butler detailed how he almost killed his co-star Hilary Swank in mishap while shooting a scene for their film P.S. I Love You.
Gerard Butler revealed that he almost killed co-star Hilary Swank in an incident involving a crocodile clamp while shooting a scene for their film P.S. I Love You.
The romantic drama, which was released in 2007, was directed by Richard LaGravenese and based on the Cecelia Ahern novel of the same name.
While it was a success at the box office and well-liked by audiences, the film garnered largely negative reviews from critics who thought that Swank was miscast in the lead role and largely panned the adaptation of Ahern’s book.
While discussing some of his past movie roles in a guest appearance on The Drew Barrymore Show, Butler explained how he “nearly killed” co-star Hilary Swank while shooting a scene for P.S. I Love You.
Butler, who also injured himself while shooting his latest movie, Plane, said that the incident occurred during a silly scene that had the burly action star doing a little dance for Swank’s character while wearing nothing but his boxers and some suspenders.
Unfortunately, a crocodile clip got caught on a prop for the scene and ended up shooting over Butler’s head and into Swank’s, which required the acclaimed actress to make a hospital visit. Check out Butler’s full quote below.
“[Hilary Swank] was so cool and so great to work with that I almost killed her. [Laughs] You know the scene where I’m dancing and I [am wearing] suspenders? I shot that scene for a day and a half, and I had to dance like an idiot in the suspenders.
At one point, the clip, which was a crocodile clip, got stuck in the television as I’m crawling towards her, and she’s right in front of me, laughing hysterically. The camera people had these plastic fronts to protect themselves from this crocodile because I had to ping it, and it would go [flying] past my face.
I’m crawling towards the bed, it gets stuck, it releases, flies over my head, hits her in the head, slashes her head. I mean, I cut her open. You could even see the teeth of the [crocodile]. She had to get taken to the hospital. I’m just sitting there in my boxer shorts and my boots and a pair of socks, and I just started crying.”
How Is PS I Love You Remembered Today?
The film followed Holly Reilly-Kennedy (Swank) as she dealt with the passing of her beloved husband Gerry (Butler). Gerry prepared a series of letters to be delivered to Holly after his passing, and these letters, each of which ends with “P.S. I Love You,” help Holly move forward in her life and warm to new adventures.
The Walking Dead star Jeffrey Dean Morgan, who plays Holly’s love interest in P.S. I Love You, even said that this was the movie that really launched his career.
Ahern released a follow-up to her P.S. I Love You novel in 2019 titled Postscript, which follows Holly as she continues to grow and evolve without Gerry despite being pulled back into that world by external forces.
Swank showed interest in making a sequel based on Postscript, and the film rights were acquired by Alcon Entertainment in 2020, which means the new film has some potential.
Kudrow’s character is also in the second book, so it would be nice to see her take on that role again, and even though Butler’s Gerry is dead, he could still play a major role in the film through flashbacks as he did in the original. That is, if Butler’s got the time in his busy upcoming schedule.
What’s Next For Gerard Butler?
Butler’s affinity for sequels is no secret. Butler is expected to return to several franchises soon for sequels such as Den Of Thieves 2: Pantera, Greenland: Migration, and Night Has Fallen, though none have official release dates as of yet.
One movie that Butler has completed is the action thriller Kandahar, which follows Butler as a CIA operative who attempts to make his way to an extraction point after he’s caught behind enemy lines in Afghanistan.
Open Road Films recently announced the film will be released on May 26th, 2023, which would make it Butler’s second release of 2023 following Plane, which was released on January 13th to surprisingly good reviews.