Gary Oldman says he's thankful for movies like 'Harry Potter' and 'Batman' because 'they saved him'

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Gary Oldman is usually proud of his acting abilities and enjoys watching some of his earlier performances, but that was not the case with the ‘Harry Potter.’

The celebrated actor made his appearance on the ’Happy Sad Confused’ podcast and talked about his experience of working in 2004 ‘Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.’

Gary Oldman reveals what saved him from going down under

Oldman told podcast host Josh Horowitz, “I think my work is mediocre in it. No, I do. Maybe if I had read the books like Alan [Rickman], if I had got ahead of the curve, if I had known what’s coming, I honestly think I would have played it differently."

He revealed that he likes to watch his previous flicks. “It’s like anything, if I sat and watched myself in something and said, ‘My god, I’m amazing,’ that would be a very sad day, because you want to make the next thing better.”

Gary Oldman revived his acting career with the success of the ‘Harry Potter’ and ‘Batman’ film franchises, as per Variety.

During his appearance on ‘The Drew Barrymore Show’, he said, “At 42 years old, I woke up divorced and I had custody of [my] boys,” Oldman said.

“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," he added.

“Thank God for ‘Harry Potter,’” the 65-year-old further said, adding “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.”

Gary Oldman reflects on raising children and managing work

The critically acclaimed actor further explained how he managed work and personal life while working on the ‘Batman Begins’ in 2005.

“When we did the first Batman. London doubled for Gotham. I did 27 round trips of flying back from LA,” Oldman said.

“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," he added.