Colin Farrell has long had the ability to make fans swoon; and this weekend, he sent them wild once again as he pushed his close friend across the finish line of the Irish Life Dublin Marathon.
On Sunday afternoon in a rainy Ireland, The Penguin star triumphantly crossed the finish line at Mount Upper Street – and he didn’t do it alone.
The image of Farrell, 49, pushing his friend Emma Fogarty in a wheelchair for the final four kilometres of the race was emblematic of his decades-long transformation from Hollywood bad boy into charity hero.
Emma is Ireland’s longest survivor of epidermolysis bullosa (EB), a group of rare genetic disorder that causes the skin to become very fragile.
Born with no skin on her left foot and right arm, Emma has been diagnosed with the most severe form of EB and experiences excruciating blisters from the slightest touch. The condition also known as butterfly skin.
Colin Farrell’s recent appearance at the Dublin marathon left fans emotional, as The Penguin star pushed his friend Emma Fogarty across the finish line in a wheelchair
Emma is Ireland’s longest survivor of epidermolysis bullosa (EB), a group of rare genetic disorder that cause the skin to become very fragile
The Oscar-nominated actor ran the marathon for Emma and Debra, the national charity supporting people with EB – raising nearly £600,000 for people living with EB.
‘I have known Emma for many years and she epitomises bravery, she is what courage and pure determination are all about,’ said Farrell in a statement afterwards.
‘That run was nothing compared to the pain she is forced to endure every single day, even though she doesn’t show it.
‘It was an honour to see her waiting for me with 4km to go, each of those representing a decade of her life, and to do the final stretch together. I’ll never forget it.’
And as crowds of Dubliners cheered for the duo, fans of the actor couldn’t believe how far Farrell has come.
In a post on Reddit, several users noted that Farrell had completely turned his life around and ‘found himself’ in the last 15 years.
They celebrated his evolution – from notorious party boy to yoga-loving family man – while crediting Farrell for using his celebrity status to help others.
‘He is a force for good. I love his acting but I absolutely adore him as a protective father figure and a family man,’ one comment read. ‘An Irish treasure and a gift to the world.’
Another person added: ‘He’s really come far after getting sober and taking his own mental health seriously. Happy for him!’
A third user praised Farrell’s absolute commitment to his son James, who has special needs, suggesting that was the force that propelled his recovery after years of drug and alcohol abuse and mental health struggles.
Wearing running shorts, a beanie, and a t-shirt that read ‘Emma’s run to 40’, the father-of-two looked world’s away from the swaggering Hollywood newbie whose early years in the industry were marked by drug-fuelled parties, high-profile romances, a sex tape, and controversial interviews.
Now in his second act, the 49-year-old Irish actor is a completely changed man: sober, successful, and family-oriented.
Once dismissed over his bad boy antics ands for starring in film flops, Colin Farrell has completely transformed his image in recent years to become one of Hollywood’s most acclaimed actors
But Farrell, now 48, once struggled with addictions that threatened to derail his career entirely. Pictured in 2005
Carrell’s ‘bad boy’ image perhaps first reared its head in his school days in Castleknock, Dublin, when according to the actor, he was expelled from one of the most exclusive private schools in Ireland.
Farrell once told Playboy: ‘I’ll never forget packing my bags and walking out of the school feeling like a f****** rock star.‘
By his own admission, Farrell had been ‘high or drunk’ since the age of 14.
He spoke candidly about being ‘off my t*** on E’ when music promoter Louis Walsh approached Farrell, then 17, at a Dublin night club and asked him to audition for Boyzone (Farrell’s ‘tone-deaf’ rendition of Careless Whisper ultimately failed to make the cut).
By the time he was 27, Farrell told Radio Times, his weekly intake of intoxicants comprised ’20 Es, four grams of coke, six of speed, half an ounce of hash, three bottles of Jack Daniel’s, 12 bottles of red wine, 60 pints, and 40 fags a day.’
Farrell’s eldest son, James, is neurodivergent. He was born with Angelman Syndrome a rare genetic disorder
Colin looks unrecognisable as Oswald ‘Oz’ Cobb in The Pengiun – reprising his role from the 2022 film The Batman
As his celebrity grew, so did Farrell’s propensity for scandal.
He made a number of eyebrow-raising claims and comments during an infamous Playboy magazine interview in 2003, including that he lost his virginity to a 36-year-old woman.
He also confessed to being a ‘f****** E-head’ and watching porn since he was 14, while comparing paying for sex to ‘ordering a pizza’.
Farrell also sparked backlash against his comments about heroin, saying the drug was ‘fine in moderation’ (the actor later admitted he deeply regretted the comment).
The same year, he shocked fans by kissing a reporter during a red carpet interview at the premiere of S.W.A.T. after she asked Farrell: ‘who’s going to get snogged tonight?’
In the early 2000s, Farrell landed himself in hot water for his partying ways. Pictured at the Minority Report premiere
Scandals: After quickly becoming a Hollywood household name, Colin (pictured in 2003) carved out a reputation for his outrageous behaviour and scandalous comments
‘Out of control’: In 2013, he admitted his ‘high tolerance’ for drugs meant that he struggled to learn when to stop because he didn’t know his limits. He is pictured in 2003
In his romantic rollercoaster decade, he was linked to an array of names including Britney Spears
When asked about the on-camera kiss in a 2017 interview with the New York Times, he alluded to being intoxicated: ‘Did I? Who? Which one? I swear to God, I lost so much time.’
Throughout the early noughties Farrell was one of the most notorious lotharios in Hollywood and has been linked to Britney Spears (who said his kiss was the ‘hottest thing in the world’) Demi Moore, Angelina Jolie and Carmen Electra.
In 2006, the actor sued his ex-girlfriend, former Playboy model Nicole Narain for releasing their 2003 sex tape, after the actor had already turned down $5 million to distribute the 14-minute clip.
‘It seemed like a good idea at the time,’ he told Jonathan Ross in 2008.
Farrell also expressed his horror over the possibility of his mother Rita stumbling upon the tape, with the actor quipping: ‘God forbid, she’d tell me something like ‘You remind me of your father at certain angles’.’
It was around the same time that Farrell, who was being touted as next big thing, delivered his career’s biggest flop to date – the sword-and-sandal dud Alexander.
His performance as a bleach-blond Alexander the Great in Oliver Stone’s epic Alexander (2004) was widely criticised as his career risked plunging into a slump.
At the same time, his years of hard-partying were beginning to catch up with Farrell.
Spurred into action by fatherhood (Farrell and his former girlfriend, model Kim Bordenave welcomed their eldest son James in 2003), he checked himself into rehab in 2006 after filming Miami Vice.
Colin Farrell picked up his second Golden Globe for his incredible performance in The Banshees of Inisherin
James, who suffers from a rare neurogenetic disorder called Angelman Syndrome, was a ‘big, big part of me putting the bottle down,’ Farrell previously told People magazine.
‘I was in no condition to be a friend never mind the father of a child which such exacting needs. So if it wasn’t for my sobriety, I wouldn’t be able to be there for James and enjoy in the marvels of his life and support him in the way that I feel that can… ‘
Describing his son as ‘magic’, Farrell added he ‘burst into tears’ when James took his first steps when he was four years old.
Farrell is also a father to Henry, his son with former girlfriend and Ondine co-star, Alicja Bachleda-Curús.
He has now set up the Colin Farrell Foundation inspired by his two sons, which aims to transforms the lives of individuals and families living with intellectual disabilities.
Colin’s son James, 20, has Angelman syndrome, meaning he requires a high level of care
Smash hit: He secured a role in In Bruges alongside Brendan Gleeson and the crime comedy was the crown in his triumphant return, as he got his first ever Golden Globe for it
Colin Farrell and his son Henry pose on the champagne-colored red carpet, March 2023
Last year Farrell reportedly split from his girlfriend of five years, Kelly MacNamara (pictured in 2017)
Far from seeing his career derailed due to drugs and addiction, these days Colin is first and foremost a doting father and secondly, one of Hollywood’s most acclaimed actors
After rehab, Farrell made a spectacular return to acting with the 2008 film In Bruges, which won him his first Golden Globe the following year. More importantly, it laid the foundation for his epic partnership with co-star Brendan Gleeson, and director Martin McDonagh that really shone through in The Banshees of Inisherin over a decade later.
The poignant tragicomedy about two lifelong friends (played by Farrell and Gleeson) won Farrell his third Golden Globe.
His 2023 acceptance speech went viral for ‘kicking the absolute a** out of toxic masculinity’ after Farrell became emotional about working with ‘my dance partner’ of 14 years, Gleeson.
He also told actress Ana de Armas ‘I cried myself to sleep the night that I saw your film Blonde,’ referring to the Marilyn Monroe biopic that saw her transform into the iconic Hollywood star.
The man standing on-stage that evening was a far cry from the sweary youngster who once compared paid sex with takeout.
What separated them was a newfound respect for the movies, a commitment to staying sober, and a desire to experiment with his acting talents with films like Crazy Heart, The Killing of the Sacred Deer, and The Lobster.
Ultimately, shedding his macho, larger-than-life movie star image – and all its bells and whistles – Farrell became something much more endearing: self-aware.