Gerard Butler has appeared in crime films.
Gerard James Butler ( born 13 November 1969 ) is a Scottish actor who has appeared on film , stage , and television . He also played Sam Childers in the 2011 action biopic Machine Gun Preacher . Poliziotteschi ( [ polittsjotˈteski ] ) films constitute a subgenre of crime and action film that emerged in Italy in the late 1960s and reached the height of their popularity in the 1970s .