Gerard Butler on gruelling shoot for Zack Snyder's epic film '300': 'Every day somebody was taken to hospital'

Los Angeles: Scottish star Gerard Butler says the cast and crew of Zack Snyder's epic film "300" had to toil hard for the movie that became a humongous success after it released in 2006.

In an interview with People magazine, the actor revealed that a lot of actors sustained injuries during the shooting of the film.

"I remember every day somebody was getting taken to the hospital. You’d be doing a fight, you turn around, there’s a guy down there, a spear went in his eye. Another time, you turn around, there’s a guy over there who just fell, broke his ankle. I mean, it was insane," he said.

Based on Frank Miller's graphic novel of the same name, "300" depicted the Battle of Thermopylae, where King Leonidas (Gerard Butler) leads 300 fearless Spartan warriors against the massive Persian army of King Xerxes (Rodrigo Santoro).

Upon its debut in theatres, the film was praised by the critics for its stylised cinematography, slow-motion battle sequences, and powerful dialogues. It earned over USD 450 million at the global box office.

Though Butler never sustained an injury while shooting “300”, he remembered that he had “almost drown” when he was shooting the 2012 surf drama “Chasing Mavericks” after “getting taken down by a huge set of waves”.

“I thought I was done. They had to take me out, take me to hospital, put me out, give me the defibrillator. I mean, it was intense," Butler said.

The actor currently stars in "Den of Thieves 2: Pantera", the sequel to his 2018 hit "Den of Thieves". He will be next seen in "How to Train Your Dragon", the live-action film based on the 2010 animated film of the same name.