Colin Farrell channels son James’ Angelman syndrome to launch new foundation: ‘He’s magic’
Oscar-nominated actor Colin Farrell just announced his newest role: charity foundation president.
The “Banshees of Inisherin” and “The Batman” star unveiled his eponymous Colin Farrell Foundation, which seeks to benefit people living with intellectual disabilities and their families. At the core of Farrell’s new organization and its mission: the actor’s 20-year-old son James, who lives with Angelman Syndrome.
“I want the world to be kind to James,” Farrell told People in an interview published Wednesday. “I want the world to treat him with kindness and respect.”
The actors, good friends in real life, disagree about how best to live life and what leaving a legacy really means.
Angelman Syndrome is an incurable condition caused by a change in a gene that causes “delayed development, problems with speech and balance, mental disability, and sometimes, seizures,” according to Mayo Clinic. The condition causes developmental delays but does not affect a person’s lifespan.
James, whom Farrell shares with ex-girlfriend and model Kim Bordenave, is nonverbal and will soon age out of support systems and programs that benefit people with special needs and their families, the actor said. James will celebrate his 21st birthday in September.
“You’re left with a young adult who should be an integrated part of our modern society and more often than not is left behind,” Farrell, 48, added.
The Colin Farrell Foundation seeks to remedy that transition by providing people in the intellectual disability community with “education, awareness, advocacy, and innovative programs,” the website says. Farrell told People that he believes his son would think that starting the foundation is a “no-brainer.”
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The Irish “In Bruges” and “After Yang” actor, a longtime special needs advocate, also praised his son’s hard work when it comes to walking and feeding himself.
“When he started feeding himself for the first time, his face looks like a Jackson Pollock by the end of it,” the actor said. “But he gets it in, he feeds himself beautifully. I’m proud of him every day, because I just think he’s magic.”
In addition to James, Farrell shares 14-year-old son Henry with actor Alicja Bachleda-Curuś.
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