Gerry Bertier - Remember The Titans

Gerry Bertier was portrayed in the Disney film Remember the Titans by actor Ryan Hurst. A lot of the film is historically inaccurate, and there are many aspects of Bertier's portrayal in the film that are not completely factual. Certain elements of Gerry's personal life were embellished, while other elements were complete fabrications. One example of this is Bertier's girlfriend: in the film, Gerry has a girlfriend named Emma (played by Kate Bosworth) who has difficulty accepting Bertier's newfound respect for his black teammates while, in reality, Bertier did have a girlfriend, but her name was Becky. Bertier did not enter his first day at T.C. Williams amidst a sea of protestors. Bertier and Campbell were close friends, but not to the degree that they were in Remember the Titans. Their relationship was much like their relationships with any of their other teammates. In the film, Bertier only sneaks Julius in to see him by calling him his brother while in the hospital after his accident, but this treatment was not reserved for Julius. In fact, many teammates were allowed in to see Bertier under the guise of immediate family.

Bertier's on-the-field portrayal in the film, however, is almost entirely correct. As the team's defensive captain, Bertier was a dominating force on the linebacking corps and received All-American honors following the team's championship season. Although heralded as an exceptional leader on and off the football field, Bertier's duties never included cutting fellow players from the team as he was shown doing in the film.