Collin Farrell gave a unique insight into his life as a caregiver for his 20-year-old son James, who has special needs due to Angelman syndrome.
James was born with a neurogenetic disorder that causes developmental delays, balance problems and other problems in patients.
His own case is so severe that he cannot speak and requires the help of a caregiver to carry out his daily tasks.
Now that Colin is setting up a foundation for other adults with intellectual disabilities, he speaks movingly about his love for his son.
“I want the world to be kind to James. I want the world to treat him with kindness and respect,” the 48-year-old actor said People.
Collin Farrell has given a rare glimpse into his life as a caregiver for his son James, 20, who has Angelman syndrome; he showed this photo on The Ellen DeGeneres Show in 2010
James is pictured in an Instagram photo his mother Kim Bordenave posted on February 15 in honor of Angelman Syndrome Awareness Day
Colin shares James with his ex, Canadian model Kim Bordenave, and has another son, Henry, 14, with his Ondine colleague Alicja Bachleda-Curús.
During his new photoshoot, James was playing with a ball in the backyard and he sweetly decided to get a reporter involved in the activity by throwing the ball to her.
Colin said James has ‘worked so hard his whole life’ on learning ‘repetition’ and ‘balance’ and improving his ‘jerky gait’.
He recalled: ‘When he first started eating himself, his face looked like Jackson Pollock at the end. But he gets it in, he eats himself beautifully. I’m proud of him every day, because I think he’s just magical.’
“This is the first time I’ve talked about it, and the only reason I’m doing it is because I can’t ask James if he wants to do this,” Colin said.
One of the reasons he set up his foundation is that people with special needs aged 21 and over are no longer entitled to certain forms of assistance to which they previously had access.
“Once your child turns 21, they’re kind of on their own,” Colin said, less than two months before James turns that age.
“All the precautions that are taken, special education classes, all that goes away. You are left with a young adult who should be an integral part of our modern society, but who is often left behind.”
Colin shares James with his ex, Canadian model Kim Bordenave, and has another son named Henry, 14, with his Ondine co-star Alicja Bachleda-Curús; Kim pictured with James
Kim lovingly posted this photo of James on Mother’s Day 2023, writing: ‘I love this man x Happy Mother’s Day to all the mums out there x lots of love’
Kim posted this photo of James on Angelman Syndrome Awareness Day 2023, explaining, “It’s his physical limitations that are the hardest for us, for him.”
Colin is pictured with his youngest son Henry at last year’s Oscars, where he was nominated for Best Actor in a Leading Role for Martin McDonagh’s The Banshees Of Inisherin
He explained: ‘This is the first time I’m talking about it, and the only reason I’m doing it is because I can’t ask James if he wants to do this.’
Colin then clarified: ‘I mean, I can do it. I speak to James as if he’s 20 and perfectly fluent in English and has age-appropriate cognitive ability.’
He added: ‘But I can’t give him a specific answer as to whether he’s happy with this or not. So I have to make a decision based on the nature of James, the type of young man he is and the goodness that he has in his heart.’
The In Bruges actor hopes ‘that if James knew he could have his picture taken with me in the backyard, which is not my favorite thing to do, and that we could help families and other young adults with special needs, he would say, “Dad, what are you talking about? Why are you even asking me? It’s a no-brainer.”‘
He noted that “that’s the reason” he agreed to open his life to the spotlight and start his foundation. “This is all because of James — it’s all in his honor.”
The Colin Farrell Foundation’s goal is to ‘give families with a child with special needs more opportunities so that they get the support they deserve, in short, help in all areas of life.’
According to him, adults with intellectual disabilities ‘have earned the right to a greater degree of individuality and autonomy in life, and to a greater sense of community’.
When James was four, Colin revealed he had Angelman syndrome, saying his son had shown “incredible courage” despite his condition.
Shortly before James turned 18, Colin and Kim filed for a conservatorship for him; they are pictured at the 2003 Oscars, six months before he was born.
“He took his first steps about six weeks ago, and it’s been four years in the making. It was incredibly emotional. There wasn’t a dry eye in the house,” Colin said.
“The only time I’m reminded that there’s something different about him – that he’s different from what’s considered normal – is when I see him with other four-year-olds. I think, ‘Oh yeah,’ and it comes back to me. But from day one I felt that he’s who he should be,” he told the Irish Independent.
Shortly before James turned 18, Colin and Kim filed for conservatorship, noting that he still needed help with tasks like dressing and cooking.
In 2012, Colin noted that he and Kim “share the smallest victories; first words at six or seven, feeding myself at 19, and getting seizures under control. When James took his first steps at four, I nearly broke in half!”
Colin first decided to “talk openly about the pride and joy I had for our son” when he attended the Special Olympics in 2007, he told InStyle.
“He has enriched my life, but I don’t want to minimize the trials that so many families go through; the fear, the despair, the frustration and the pain… When you are the parent of a child with special needs, it is important to know that you are not alone.”
