Colin Farrell grew emotional and wiped away tears while opening up about his son's rare neurogenetic disorder.
The actor, known for films such as The Banshees of Inisherin and In Bruges, shares 20-year-old James with model Kim Bordenave. The former couple welcomed their son together in 2003.
When he was approximately two and a half years old, James was diagnosed with Angelman syndrome, a complex neurological condition characterized by developmental delays, lack of speech, seizures and impaired balance. During an interview with People, Farrell teared up when he recalled the time James took his first steps two weeks short of his fourth birthday.
Newsweek emailed a spokesperson for Farrell for comment on Wednesday.
"My God James' first steps I'll never forget James' first steps ... We were in the house we lived in at the time and Deborah, who's amazing, who was here yesterday—I mean James' team as to say, they've been in his life for 18 years, they love him so much," Farrell explained.
"Deborah came upstairs and I knew that they were working on walking and she came upstairs and she said 'James has something to show you.' And she said 'Go over there,' and I and I stood over there and she had him and she let him go, just—" the actor said as he wiped away tears.
He continued: "It was very, it was, I mean it was so profound. I mean it—yeah it was magic I mean, I just, I'll never forget the face of determination on him as he just walked towards me you know and he took like six steps and I burst—burst—into tears it was amazing.
"There are many children and young adults with Angelman syndrome who are wheelchair bound and there are other children you'll see who run around as if there wasn't a single, you know, chromosomal issue in their body at all.
"James is somewhere kind of in the middle of that field but yeah, that was, I mean your first steps are always a significant thing ... to be told that he may never walk and see those first steps was just, it was just, I—I'll never forget it it was so overwhelming."
Due to the syndrome, James has had a lot of seizures over the years, resulting in Farrell often having to take him to the hospital. Thankfully, his son hasn't had a seizure in a decade.
"I remember the first two questions I asked at the time were um, 'What's the life expectancy' and 'How much pain is involved.' And the doctor said life expectancy as far as we can tell is the same for you and for me and um pain no but it's a seizure condition, that was one of the big things and it's one of the things that parents struggle with greatly is that our children with Angelman have seizures.
"James had plenty of seizures back in the day, I've been in the back of ambulances, I've been in the hospital with him. Thankfully he hasn't had one in 10 or 11 years, which is, which is amazing."
As James is turning 21 in September, he will age out of many of the support systems provided for families with kids who have special needs. To provide support for adult children like his son who have intellectual disabilities, Farrell has launched the Colin Farrell Foundation.
Farrell hopes to help other families through advocacy, education and innovative programs.
"It's early days, like this is the first time I've spoken about it and obviously the only reason I'm speaking is, I can't ask James if he wants to do this.
"I have to make a call based on knowing James's spirit and what kind of young man he is and the goodness that he has in his heart."
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