Did you guys know that Colin Farrell has an AppleTV+ series? It’s called Sugar and it’s an LA noir where he plays a private detective (John Sugar) searching for a Hollywood producer’s granddaughter. I love a good noir and a detective show, so I’m probably going to check it out. To promote the series, Colin recently chatted with Entertainment Tonight about the Irish invasion of Hollywood. Colin wasn’t the first Irish actor to work in Hollywood, but he’s something of a big-brother figure to all of the Irish talent working in American productions these days. Incidentally, did you know that Colin and Cillian Murphy are the same age?? Wildly different careers, came up around the same time, and both are 47 years old. Some highlights from Colin’s ET interview:
Colin isn’t surprised by the Irish invasion: He’s impressed with Barry Keoghan, Andrew Scott, Paul Mescal, Saoirse Ronan, Cillian Murphy and Liam Neeson. The Banshees of Inisherin star says that for an island just 33,000 square miles in size, having such a wealth of talent is “amazing” and proves that the country has a deep history rooted in storytelling, whether that be on screen, in music or channeled into any other artistic ventures. “I mean, we punch so far above our weight, you know? We’re only a country of five million people and I don’t know, Irish people — just whether it’s through music, the written word, whether it’s prose of poetry, film, theater of course, we just — we have a deep connection to. I think just to the importance of story and to leaning into stories and meanings with which we understand ourselves and the world around us.”
On Barry Keoghan: “Barry’s off to the races. He’s killing it, he’s doing amazing. He’s great, he’s doing amazing. I saw him last week for the first time in close to a year and he seemed like he was in great form, so it was great to see him.”
On his new show, ‘Sugar’: “I’ve loved noir films for many, many years. I’ve enjoyed so many of them, the private detective trope is always an interesting one ’cause it brings up questions of purpose — meaning what side of the line you’re on, good and bad. Private detectives are usually — in the world of noir — hard-boiled. They’re usually somewhat bittered or jaded by the ugliness they’ve observed throughout their work and this guy wasn’t.”
It is wild to think that Ireland only has a population of 5 million and there are so many Irish actors working across British and American productions right now. There are so many Irish actors, people forgot to name-check Michael Fassbender as well! I have a little theory that Irish actors are able to move around so much and play such wildly different characters because, in general, Irish actors are better at accent work. Specifically, Irish actors are better at American accents than British actors. I don’t know if Irish peeps just have a better ear for accents, or if it’s something else, but I swear, British actors have shown time and time again that they suck at accent work.
Photos courtesy of Cover Images.
Los Angeles Press Day For Apple TV+’s ‘Sugar’ at the Four Seasons Hotel Featuring: Colin Farrell Where: Beverly Hills, California, United States When: 12 Mar 2024 Credit: Faye’s Vision/Cover Images 
Los Angeles Press Day For Apple TV+’s ‘Sugar’ at the Four Seasons Hotel Featuring: Colin Farrell Where: Beverly Hills, California, United States When: 12 Mar 2024 Credit: Faye’s Vision/Cover Images 
Los Angeles Press Day For Apple TV+’s ‘Sugar’ at the Four Seasons Hotel Featuring: Colin Farrell Where: Beverly Hills, California, United States When: 12 Mar 2024 Credit: Faye’s Vision/Cover Images
Los Angeles Press Day For Apple TV+’s ‘Sugar’ at the Four Seasons Hotel Featuring: Colin Farrell, Kirby Howell-Baptiste Where: Beverly Hills, California, United States When: 12 Mar 2024 Credit: Faye’s Vision/Cover ImagesncG1vNJzZmivp6x7pLHLnpmirJOdxm%2BvzqZmcW5lZ4J6e8Koo6Kmj5uus77EpaOYoaKewKmrwKuroqukqKyxwc2cn5irn5Szor6%2BmpmorpWUvLa%2BvrCcop%2BYqay6u9SYoqenp2Q%3D