Colin Farrell

While many actors in Hollywood need to pay their dues to land big roles, Colin Farrell seemingly went in fast forward straight to the top. With 18 films under his belt (and two currently in post-production), this actor is content with the view from the top.

Early Years

Colin James Farrell was born on May 31, 1976 in Castleknock, Dublin, Ireland to Eamon Farrell and Rita Farrell. Both his father and uncle, Tommy Farrell, played football for the Irish Football Club Shamrock Rovers during the 1960s. Farrell is the youngest of four children.

With the family sports lineage, Farrell's childhood aspiration was to be a football player too. The acting bug bit, however, and Farrell attended the Gaiety Drama School in Dublin. His acting school career was cut short when he won the role of Danny Byrne on the Irish series Ballykissangel.

Early Acting Roles

Colin Farrell's role on Ballykissangel brought attention to his acting talent, and he was cast in his first film, 1997’s Drinking Crude. Following that, he had some success as a stage actor before acting in the 1998 miniseries Falling for a Dancer. His first major film role came from fellow actor, Tim Roth, in Roth's 1999 directorial debut of The War Zone. In 2000, he starred in Ordinary Decent Criminal with Kevin Spacey. With that film, he was able to get an American agent – and the rest is history.

Farrell's Quick Rise to Fame

Colin Farrell at the Alexander World Premiere

It didn’t take long for Farrell to get noticed stateside. With his smoldering good looks and bad boy persona, women swooned every time he hit the big screen. His first major American role was in Joel Schumacher's Tigerland, playing an American soldier. Critics and film executives took notice of the new talent, and it wasn’t long before Colin Farrell was landing major roles – opposite major actors.

Farrell went on to make American Outlaws, Hart's War (with Bruce Willis), Minority Report (opposite Tom Cruise), Phone Booth, The Recruit (with Al Pacino), Daredevil (starring Jennifer Garner and Ben Affleck), and S.W.A.T (with Samuel L. Jackson). Among the films Farrell has made to date, he can also be seen in Alexander, Veronica Guerin (with Cate Blanchett), Intermission, A Home at the End of the World, The New World, and Miami Vice. He will star opposite Ewan McGregor in Woody Allen’s latest untitled film.

Sex Tape Scandal

Of course, Colin Farrell has experienced as much scandal as he has success. In July of 2005, Farrell had to sue his former girlfriend, ex-Playboy Playmate Nicole Narain, to keep a [[Celebrity Sex Tapes|sex tape0 the two had made in 2003 under wraps. As these things typically go, the footage was released online in January of 2006, and the site that featured it was shut down shortly thereafter.

Colin Farrell's Stalker

During an interview on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, a fan (later known as Dessarae Bradford) came onto the stage. She claims that Farrell contacted her after learning of her self-published book, My S/M Romp with Alec Baldwin. After their phone discussion, she was led to believe that Farrell was interested in being the topic of her follow-up book. Farrell successfully obtained a restraining order, prohibiting Bradford from being within 150 yards of Farrell, his ex-girlfriend, Kim Bordenave, and their son James. The restraining order is effective through August 2009.

Colin Farrell and Jamie Foxx at the Miami Vice Premiere

Too Sexy for China?

Farrell’s film Miami Vice, with Jamie Foxx, reportedly had 20 minutes of film footage cut, including sex scenes between Gong Li and Farrell, before opening in China at the end of October. In the film, Farrell plays Sonny Crockett, the Miami detective made famous by Don Johnson in the 1980s television series.

Special Olympics Spokesman

In October of 2006, Colin Farrell announced that he will be a spokesman for the 2007 Special Olympics. Joining him are other big-name celebrities, Eva Mendes and Bruce Willis. The Special Olympics World Games will take place in Shanghai, with as many as 7,000 athletes attending the event.

Colin Farrell Trivia

• Colin was born prematurely, weighing just 1 lb. 6 oz.
• Married actress Amelia Warner in July 2001, divorced in November of the same year.
• He was named one of People magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People in 2003.
• Farrell was named GQ’s Leading Man of the Year in 2003.
• Has a child, James, born September 12, 2003.
• His sister, Claudine Farrell, once served as his personal assistant.
• Farrell auctioned himself in September 2005 for the benefit of Hurricane Katrina victims; he helped raise $20,000.
• Farrell is a general in the United Nations World Food Programme.

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