Gerard Butler’s brogue bugged actual ‘Preacher’ Sam Childers
September 25, 2011 6:58PM
In “Machine Gun Preacher,” Gerard Butler (left) plays Sam Childers (right), a drug addict and criminal who changed his ways and dedicated himself to helping children caught up in war in Sudan.
Updated: November 11, 2011 1:48PM
When Sam Childers met the actor who would play him in “Machine Gun Preacher,” he was thrown by Gerard Butler’s strong Scottish accent.
“I thought, ‘How is this guy going to sound like me, like a guy from Western Pennsylvania?’ ” Childers recalled.
“But he did it. Not once in the movie did I ever hear that accent of his.”
And there was something else Childers liked about how Butler played him.
“It was his passion. He really captured what was going on in my heart at the time.”
In one scene, Butler is attempting to get money for the orphanage at a bank, and “he nailed it,” Childers said. “Watching that scene in the movie — and that was true for most of the scenes — was like completely reliving my life a second time. …
“Kind of eerie, but very satisfying, because that’s why the film was made. Hopefully, it will inspire a lot of people and make them aware not only of what happened in the Sudan, but what continues to happen, not only there, but all over the world.”
Bill Zwecker
