Gerard Butler has revealed his terrifying ordeal during the filming of new movie 'Chasing Mavericks' after he was pulled under the waves and could have drowned.
The star may have earned a reputation as a gruff epitome of masculinity in '300', but the actor was in no doubt about the horror of the experience which he said left him screaming for his mum.
The film is the tale of real life surfer Jay Moriaty, who hit the headlines in 1994 as a 16-year-old by being knocked down by a giant 30 foot wave only to get up and continue riding the waves almost instantaneously.
The actor told USA Today that when pulled under, "all of those things were going around my head, going 'This is it. If I panic now…"
Then things got worse for the Scottish star as he was hit by another wave with no respite from his watery foe, he said: “I felt very present."
Gerard, who spent time at the Betty Ford clinic earlier this year, continued: "There was something that felt very normal about it. But by the time I got to the point I got to thinking, 'I'm in big trouble now,' that was only a about a quarter of the way through it. It went on and on and on. And then I started thinking, I just wanted to scream. And I was so deep underwater. I wanted to scream 'Help, somebody!' Or 'Mum!' Or something. And yet I knew the second I did that I was done".
The actor was saved by a quick thinking nearby crew member who stuck out a hand to save him from his terrifying experience, but the star has been left with incredible respect for the man he portrays and his kind.
'Chasing Mavericks' gets its US release this Friday.
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