Colin Farrell has made the hard decision to put his 21-year-old son James, who suffers from Angelman syndrome, in a long-term care facility.
“It’s tricky – some parents will say, ‘I want to take care of my child myself’, and I respect that,” Farrell, 48, told recently told Candis magazine (via The Independent).
The “Penguin” actor explained to the outlet that he’s terrified what will happen to James if something were to suddenly happen to him or James’ mom, Kim Bordenave.
“But my horror would be, what if I have a heart attack tomorrow, and, God forbid, James’ mother, Kim, has a car crash and she’s taken too – and then James is on his own?”
He added that James would become a “ward of the state” and they wouldn’t have a say in where he goes without a plan in place.
The exes, who co-parent James, are looking for a long-term place together where they can go and visit him and “take him out sometimes.”
“We want him to find somewhere where he can have a full and happy life, where he feels connected,” the “Banshees of Inisherin” actor explained.
According to Mayo Clinic, Angelman syndrome is a rare genetic disorder that causes delayed development, problems with speech and balance, mental disability, and seizures.
Farrell announced in August 2024 that he was starting a foundation to honor his “magic” son.
“I want the world to be kind to James,” he told People at the time. “I want the world to treat him with kindness and respect.”
Farrell, who is also the father of 15-year-old son Henry, explained he couldn’t ask his son if he wanted to do the foundation.
“I mean, I can. I speak to James as if he’s 20 and has perfect fluency with the English language and age-appropriate cognitive ability. But I can’t discern a particular answer from him as to whether he’s comfortable with all this or not.
“So I have to make a call based on knowing James’ spirit and what kind of young man he is and the goodness that he has in his heart,” he said.
During the same interview, he recalled bursting into tears when James took his first steps ahead of his 4th birthday.
The actor also credits James with helping his sobriety journey.
“Part of the fuel that I used to get off alcohol and drugs and all that stuff was knowing he had health issues,” Farrell told Daily Mail in October 2024. “All children need their parents — or a parent or grandparent or somebody — to care for them.
“One of the things James taught me was to access within myself a desire to live, even if it was initially more about me thinking I wanted to live to be around for him,” he said.
Farrell and Bordenave filed for a conservatorship of James in 2021 ahead of his 18th birthday.
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