Harry Potter movies 'saved' famous actor after heartbreaking divorce

Gary Oldman is deemed one of the highest-grossing actors of all time, but even the Academy Award-winning star’s life had a ‘phase’ where his career slowed down before the Harry Potter and Batman franchises. After starring in two of the most popular series of all time, the actor is opening up about his struggles while shooting the movies and how he came out of the dark time for the better.

Before starting his movie career, Gary Oldman began his acting journey through theatre in 1979. Within three years, the call to move from the stage to the big screen came as he debuted in the film Remembrance.

The British celebrity acted in several films for the next two decades before his biggest career break took place and maintained his love for theatres as a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company. Oldman showed brilliance in portraying antagonistic roles equally well as heroes as critics took notice of his turns in films like True Romance, Léon: The Professional, The Fifth Element, Air Force One, and The Contender.

Gary Oldman’s biggest career break ‘saved’ him in more ways than one

Oldman recently appeared on The Drew Barrymore Show and revealed how the biggest career break of his life truly saved him in ways fans never knew. The 65-year-old star was going through a rough divorce and had custody of his sons, meaning he couldn’t travel overseas regularly for filming.

Looking back at the tumultuous time, the Hollywood icon said: “At 42 years old, I woke up divorced and I had custody of [my] boys. That, in itself, was… that was hard because there was a shift in the industry where a lot of productions were being [filmed in] Hungary, Budapest, Prague, Australia, you know, all of these places. So, I turned down a lot of work.”

But things started looking up when he booked the Harry Potter gig where he played Sirius Black.

“Thank God for ‘Harry Potter,’” he said. “Thank God for ‘Harry Potter.’ I tell you, the two — ‘Batman’ and ‘Harry Potter’ — really, they saved me, because it meant that I could do the least amount of work for the most amount of money and then be home with the kids.”

The shooting for Batman was not easy as it meant a lot of back-and-forth traveling, but Oldman made an effort to ensure that he was there for his kids at all times. “When we did the first Batman…London doubled for Gotham. I did 27 round trips of flying back from LA,” he recalled.

“I’d fly in for a day. I’d do a shoot a day. To Chris Nolan’s credit.. he stayed on schedule. I would go home for three days. Come back for two. Go home for a weekend. Come back for a day… otherwise, I just felt my kids are being brought up by a nanny.”

Oldman was his son’s ‘true guiding light’ throughout the years

The actor’s effort to be present for his sons’ upbringing has paid off, as one opened up about his influence in their lives.

Gary’s son Gulliver chose to support his father in 2018 through an open letter, when the actor’s Oscar win made his ex-wife Fiorentino bring up accusations of him being an abuser again. His son Gulliver denied the accusation and called the actor his ‘hero.’

“My father is my one and true guiding light. My only hero. He is the man I aspire one day to become. If I could only become even half as great and half as pure. I was granted the good graces of his fatherhood as a child to be raised by him and only him. For that I am eternally grateful every hour of every day. I owe him the world and I owe him my life,” Gulliver wrote.

Reinaldo Massengill

Update: 2024-07-27

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