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Colin Farrell sits across from his BALLAD OF A SMALL PLAYER co-star Fala Chen, and when the conversation turns to career-defining gambles, he tells a story that still seems impossible. There was a moment, right at the beginning, when he had to choose between security and the dream, between a guaranteed paycheck on a hit television show and a one-in-a-million shot at making it in Hollywood. Everyone around him thought he’d lost his mind. His friends told him he was crazy. His family couldn’t understand it. Here was steady work, good money, the kind of opportunity most actors would kill for, and he was going to walk away from it to chase something with no guarantees whatsoever.
But Farrell did it anyway. He turned down the money, left the show, and took the leap. It’s the kind of decision that either launches a career or ends it before it really begins, and for years afterward, that choice has defined everything that came after. Looking at where he is now, fresh off his transformation in THE BATMAN and his revelatory work in THE BANSHEES OF INISHERIN that earned him an Oscar nomination, it’s easy to forget how easily it all could have gone the other way. One different choice, one moment of hesitation, and Colin Farrell as we know him might not exist at all.
In BALLAD OF A SMALL PLAYER, which hit select UK and Ireland cinemas on October 17th before arriving on Netflix on October 29th, Farrell plays a man who’s betting everything on games of chance in Macau’s glittering casinos, a character who understands something about risk that most people never grasp. During the interview, he and Chen discuss the film’s striking costumes, their personal good luck charms, and the greatest plot twists in cinema history, but it all circles back to that original gamble, the one he made decades ago when he was nobody and had everything to lose. That decision reverberates through his entire career, through every bold choice and unexpected turn he’s taken since, from PHONE BOOTH to IN BRUGES to his recent renaissance playing Penguin in Matt Reeves’ Gotham and a grieving man on a remote Irish island in Martin McDonagh’s dark masterpiece.
Sometimes the craziest decisions are the only ones worth making, and sometimes betting on yourself when everyone else thinks you’ve lost the plot is exactly what separates the ones who make it from the ones who always wonder what might have been.
The awards season darling you`ve been hearing about is finally streaming.
Chloé Zhao`s HAMNET—the haunting exploration of grief, love, and the creation of Shakespeare`s HAMLET—brings together Paul Mescal and Jessie Buckley in performances that have kept both firmly in the Oscar conversation.
If you missed it theatrically, now`s your chance to see what the buzz is about before Oscar night. This is the kind of film that reminds you why cinema matters.
More HAMNET at irishfilmtv.com.
Taylor Swift just dropped the OPALITE music video and it`s giving major Irish vibes ☘️✨
The nearly 6-minute visual sees Domhnall Gleeson starring as Taylor`s love interest, playing two lonely souls who find each other. But here`s where it gets even better: eagle-eyed Swifties spotted cameos from Cillian Murphy and Graham Norton, making this a full-on Irish affair.
Want the full breakdown of this transatlantic collaboration? Head to our blog for all the details on how this stunning video came together. Link in bio! 🔗
The creator of DERRY GIRLS just dropped a murder mystery set at an Irish wake, and honestly? It`s the genre mashup we didn`t know we needed 🕵️♀️
Lisa McGee is back with HOW TO GET TO HEAVEN FROM BELFAST on Netflix, and if you loved how she found humor in the Troubles (Protestants! Toasters! Cupboards!), you`re going to eat this up.
Three friends reunite for their childhood bestie`s funeral, only to realize her death isn`t what it seems. Cue an eerie adventure across Ireland that`s equal parts creepy and hilarious.
More at irishfilmtv.com.
British Vogue just put Jessie Buckley on their February cover and it`s not just a magazine shoot—it`s a coronation.
Shot by Jack Davison on the windswept Norfolk coast near her home, these images are pure cinema. Sky, sea, and a woman at the exact moment her entire life is about to change.
She`s the frontrunner for Best Actress. HAMNET is destroying audiences. She`s a new mother standing at the edge of the kind of fame that alters everything.
And Vogue captured it all—the grit, the greatness, the quiet mastery that got her here.
More Jessie at irishfilmtv.com.
Caitriona Balfe has just landed her next major role in THE HOUSEKEEPER.
Set in a grand historic manor against Cornwall`s dramatic landscape, Balfe plays Danni, a housekeeper who falls into a forbidden affair with none other than writer Daphne du Maurier (played by Mackenzi Laird).
While we`re counting down to OUTLANDER`s final season premiere on Mar 6th, Balfe is already proving she`s so much more than Claire Fraser. 🔥
More Caitriona at irishfilmtv.com.
After over 20 years of mesmerizing us on screen, Saoirse Ronan is ready to call the shots—literally.
The four-time Oscar nominee is making her directorial debut with PAPER PLANE, an Irish short film she`s also writing, and honestly, this feels like the natural next chapter for someone who`s been acting since she was nine years old.
Details about PAPER PLANE are still under wraps, but with Ronan`s track record, expectations are sky-high. What are you most excited to see from her behind the camera? 🎬
More Saoirse at irishfilmtv.com.
Louis Paxton`s Sundance 2026 debut THE INCOMER stars Domhnall Gleeson, Gayle Rankin, and Grant O`Rourke in a trio that`s equal parts hilarious and heartbreaking.
Think fish-out-of-water meets generational grief, wrapped in the warmth of fireside hot chocolate. Sometimes the scariest thing isn`t a legendary Fin Man—it`s letting go of the past.
Have you ever held onto something because changing felt like betrayal?
More Domhnall at irishfilmtv.com.
🎸 THE BEATLES ARE COMING BACK TO CINEMAS.
Four films. Four perspectives. One legendary band.
Paul Mescal as Paul McCartney. Harris Dickinson as John Lennon. Joseph Quinn as George Harrison. Barry Keoghan as Ringo Starr.
The first look just dropped via postcards hidden around Liverpool`s performing arts campus and honestly?
The hype is REAL. 🔥
Sam Mendes is directing all four films, each told from a different Beatle`s POV, and they`re ALL releasing on the same day—April 7, 2028.
Which Beatle`s story are you most excited to see? 👇
Irish talent is absolutely dominating the 2026 BAFTA nominations! 🇮🇪✨
Jessie Buckley and Paul Mescal both scored major noms for HAMNET, with Buckley up for Leading Actress as Agnes and Mescal recognized for Supporting Actor as William Shakespeare. The film has basically swept the nominations, breaking records left and right.
But that`s just the beginning. Andrew Scott landed on the longlist for BLUE MOON, Robbie Ryan got recognized for his stunning cinematography on BUGONIA, and even Cillian Murphy appears as a producer on the STEVE longlist.
From performers to cinematographers to production companies like Element Pictures and Wild Atlantic Pictures, Irish voices are everywhere in this year`s race.
The ceremony hits London on February 22nd. The world is watching Irish cinema right now, and what a moment to witness. 🎬🔥
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