Anecdotes

He has suffered from chronic insomnia since he was 12 years old.

Quit smoking on his 34th birthday (May 31, 2010). He mentioned that he smoked an entire pack of cigarettes that day, paying close attention to every puff he took, and even wrote a goodbye letter to cigarettes. He stubbed out his last cigarette at 11:55pm that night and has been smoke-free ever since.

His idol Al Pacino called him "the best actor of his generation."

Was a line dancing instructor in a nightclub in Limerick called Docs (now known as Trinity Rooms).

He says that growing up, one of his childhood idols was Al Pacino. He got the chance to work opposite his hero in La recrue (2003) (an experience he described as "scary as hell to work opposite a legend," even though he says Pacino was one of the kindest men he'd ever met and says they still hang out together).

Daredevil (2003) marks the first time he has been able to use his own Irish accent in an American movie.

He admitted in an interview with CinemaBlend that he took the role of Percival Graves in Les Animaux fantastiques (2016) because he loves the Harry Potter franchise and wanted to be a part of it.

His son James has Angelman Syndrome, a rare genetic disorder.

Was mistakenly arrested for attempted murder when he was a teenager living in Sydney, Australia. His alibi was he was high on ecstasy on the other side of town.

When he and his Bons Baisers de Bruges (2008) co-star Brendan Gleeson both got nominated for Golden Globes, he bet Brendan twenty dollars that he [Colin] would win if any of them won at all. Farrell indeed won the Golden Globe.

Auditioned to become a member of the Irish boyband, Boyzone, but was turned down.

His sister Claudine Farrell is also his personal assistant.

His acting idols and influences are Al Pacino, Steve McQueen, Paul Newman, Clint Eastwood, James Caan and Marlon Brando.

Good friends with Jeremy Renner.

Considered for the role of James Bond in Casino Royale (2006), which went to Daniel Craig.

He and Alicja Bachleda, became the parents of a son, named Henry Tadeusz, on October 7, 2009 in Los Angeles.

Resides in Dublin, Ireland and Los Angeles, California.

Dropped out of the Gaiety Drama School in Dublin and a few months later auditioned for a part in Ballykissangel (1996) and was successful.

His mother, Rita, forced him to take dancing lessons once his brother, Eamon Farrell Jr., started them. Eamon also got him into acting by attending an acting school and later recommending it to Colin.

Has twice taken roles meant for Heath Ledger. One of the roles was Alexandre (2004), the second role was L'Imaginarium du docteur Parnassus (2009). Farrell, along with Jude Law and Johnny Depp, will play a physically altered form of Ledger's character as he travels through different worlds.

Was originally considered for the role of Matt Murdock/Daredevil in the film adaptation of the comic Daredevil (2003) while Ben Affleck, who ultimately played Murdock, was originally considered for the role of Bullseye (Farrell's character).

On his left ring finger, above the knuckle he has the name "Millie" tattooed. "Millie" was a nickname for his former girlfriend Amelia Warner.

Son of Irish football player, Eamon Farrell.

The youngest of the four children, he has one brother Eamonn Farrell and two sisters: Catherine Farrell and Claudine Farrell.

He was cast to play Bruce Wayne/Batman in a Batman vs Superman film directed by Wolfgang Petersen and starring Jude Law as Superman in 2001 but it was never made.

One of his favorite books is "When Nietzsche Wept" by Irvin D. Yalom.

His girlfriend, model Kim Bordenave, gave birth to a 7lb. 9oz. baby boy called James Padraig. He was born on Friday September 12th, 2003 in a Los Angeles hospital.

Was in a relationship with Amelia Warner in 2001 and reports surfaced that they married. However, the couple had a ceremony that wasn't a legal marriage ceremony, on a beach in Tahiti while on holiday. According to Warner, they booked the event along with shark feeding as another activity.

Said that sharing the screen with Eva Marie Saint in "Winter's Tale" was a career highlight for him.

He has two tattoos on his left forearm. The first one is the words "Carpe Diem" (Latin for "Seize the day"). Beside this tattoo there is a second tattoo, which is a black cross.

Named one of People magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People in the World (2003).

Treated for exhaustion and dependency on prescription medication in December 2005. The medication was prescribed to the actor after a back injury, publicist Danica Smith said in a written statement, which revealed Farrell had checked himself into an undisclosed treatment center. "No other comments (are) to be made at this time," the statement said.

Was accompanied by Britney Spears to the American premiere of S.W.A.T. : Unité d'élite (2003).

He has acted alongside five actors who've played the role of Bruce Wayne/Batman: Ben Affleck in Daredevil (2003) (2003), Val Kilmer in Alexandre (2004) (2004), Christian Bale in Le nouveau monde (2005) (2005), Michael Keaton in Tim Burton's Dumbo (2019) (2019) and Robert Pattinson in The Batman (2022) (2022).

Played soccer during his youth.

Separated with Alicja Bachleda on October 15, 2010.

Voted 6th in 'The World's Sexiest Man of 2003' in Company magazine.

Has appeared in three films with Samantha Morton: Minority Report (2002), Mademoiselle Julie (2014) and Les Animaux fantastiques (2016).

Cedric Gauthier wrote song "I wanna be Colin Farrell".

Ranked #98 in Premiere magazine's 2003 annual Power 100 List. It is his first appearance on the list.

Has twice played a character named Ray, in both Bons Baisers de Bruges (2008) and True Detective (2014) (second season).

He has appeared in one film that has been nominated for the Best Picture Oscar: Les Banshees d'Inisherin (2022).