Heath Ledger on the set of The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus on 1/18/08. Credit:
Kavi/WENN
When Heath Ledger died he left his final role in Terry Gilliam’s film The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus incomplete. Actors Johnny Depp, Colin Farrel, and Jude Law were hired to take over Heath’s role. It’s a fantasy film set in a carnival and the actors will play different versions of Heath’s character as he is transported through other dimensions.

Heath’s will left all of his money to his father as it was made out before he had daughter Matilda, now nearly three, with Michelle Williams. Heath’s father, Kim Ledger, has said that “Matilda will be provided for,” but there’s some controversy over his control of the funds. Kim’s brothers accuse him of squandering over a million dollars when he was running their late father’s estate and question his ability to manage Heath’s money. Matilda’s mom Michelle is certainly doing well for herself as a Hollywood actress and Matilda will probably never want for anything in her life. Now Heath’s three co-actors have ensured that the little girl will definitely have part of her father’s legacy - they’ve donated their entire salaries from the Imaginarium film to the toddler:

TERRY GILLIAM: The great thing about it is that when Heath died, and we have a character that wasn’t finished in the movie, those three actors [Johnny Depp, Jude Law, and Colin Farrell] came along and saved the day. And so the character is now basically four actors creating one character. And that’s . . . it’s very interesting, and maybe even more interesting than it would have been with one actor going all the way through. I’m still not the best judge, because I have in my head what the film was going to be with Heath all the way through, and now there’s a different film there. But all I know is, it’s very funny.

Gilliam sounded proud of his film and genuinely awed by the generosity of the actors who came forward to save the picture and ensure its completion. Despite their high profiles, Depp, Law, and Farrell took no compensation for their work; instead, they donated their salaries to Heath Ledger’s two-year-old daughter, Matilda:

TERRY GILLIAM: The three actors were totally heroic coming in. This doesn’t happen very often . . . where there’s a tragedy like this, and very famous, very successful actors suddenly say, “Okay, we’ll do whatever it takes to help.” They came; they did the work; they allowed the movie to be finished; they didn’t take money–the money goes to Heath’s daughter. That’s extraordinary! And wonderful . . . and when you’re part of that, you think, “Ah, this is maybe why I went into the movies, in the beginning. I thought it would be full of wonderful people. And in our case, we’ve got a movie full of wonderful people, who did extraordinary things to help.

[From video interview on Ischiaglobal-channel.com and published on Johnnydepp-zone.com via ONTD]

That’s really nice to hear and is a wonderful gesture on the part of those three actors. It’s especially gracious of Jude Law, because he hasn’t had a lot of work lately and is said to be struggling financially relative to some of his millionaire peers. I like Law and would like to see him gain back some of the classic movie star luster he had when he was playing in The Talented Mr. Ripley.

The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus is due out in 2009.

Emma Forrest, far right, is shown with Rose McGowan and Minnie Driver, both contributors to her book Damage Control. Forrest has been named as Farrell’s girlfriend

Yesterday we caused a big controversy with an article that pointed out that Colin Farrel was on the beach with seven month’s pregnant Minnie Driver over the weekend and could possibly be the father of her unborn baby. Driver gave three hints in an interview earlier in the year as to the identity of the father, but has otherwise left him unnamed, saying she wants to keep him out of the spotlight. The three hints included the fact that he was busy, was “sort of in the same business,” and was English. The English part was not directly quoted and seemed like it was an interpretation by the journalist. Colin is a Dubliner and in my infinite stupidity, I initially thought there must be some way that being from Ireland could be construed as “English.” I asked if there was anything she could have said that would have been vague enough to indicate “English” to the journalist, but to have included Ireland, and the best answer was “across the pond.”

As I mentioned in the comments, no offense was meant to anyone with my stupid question, and the main issue was that I was desperately hoping that hot Colin, 32, was the secret father of 38 year-old Minnie Driver’s soon-to-be-born first baby. That would make for great gossip as well as a super attractive child.

Driver is good friends with Colin’s girlfriend, an English novelist
Alas, my willful misinterpretation of geography and a beach outing probably doesn’t equate to Colin’s powerful seed making a new life with Minnie. They were on the beach that day with someone else who I initially didn’t notice - a dark-haired woman who was sitting on the towel near where Minnie was standing. It was possibly an English writer named Emma Forrest, who has been named as Colin’s girlfriend of several months. Forrest and Driver are friends and Driver has even contributed to one of her novels.

But in the past six months the Irish hellraiser has found his soulmate — pretty English novelist EMMA FORREST.

The couple have been as thick as thieves since being introduced earlier this year by top film director MARTIN McDONAGH.

A source said: “Colin is a changed man. He has knocked the boozing on the head and is enjoying life in a completely different way. Emma has been a steadying influence and they have hit it off big time.

“They have spent months trying to keep the relationship under wraps because they are falling madly in love…

“They are planning to move in together in LA soon, on his next break from filming…”

Emma has had several novels published and earned quite a few quid. So any suspicions of her being after Colin for just fame and fortune are well wide of the mark.

Like Colin, she has had tough times in the past and has penned some seriously dark blogs on the internet about contemplating suicide.

[From The Sun via commenter lalie]

If you watch the video of Colin and Minnie on the beach taken by paparazzi agency X17, you can see Colin hand his son to a woman on the towel at about :40 seconds in. I completely missed this part when I saw it the first few times because I was so focused on Colin and Minnie and my delusions of their coupling.

One commenter who went by “Jane” on our last post says “It’s def. not Farrell. I know for a fact. The father is a noncelebrity writer and they broke up months ago.” Her IP address was from Los Angeles at a major movie studio, so it could be true.

Sorry for running with this story so blindly that I forgot basic geography and didn’t notice an entire person. We published photos of pigs yesterday though, and I was desperate for any kind of scandal.

Update: This story is based on my overactive imagination and stupidity and is probably not true. Minnie is close friends with Colin’s girlfriend, who was most likely with them at the beach that day.

Here’s a link to the video of Farrell and Driver on the beach. In the video, Farrell gets upset when he notices the paparazzi filming him with his four year-old son in the water. He takes his son back to a towel where Driver is standing, and then runs up to the camera, saying “Are you f’ing taking a picture of me and my boy? Turn that off.” The photographers stop videotaping at that point.

In a March appearance on The Tonight Show confirming her pregnancy, Driver declined to name the father of her baby, saying she preferred to keep him out of the spotlight.

It’s possible Driver broke up with the father of the baby, that she’s with Farrell and he’s not the father or that she’s just friends with Farrell. You can understand him getting upset about his son being filmed, but it seems like he might also be trying to keep his relationship with Driver secret.

Commenter lalie also notes that British-born Driver, 38, has been wearing a ring with a green stone on her left ring finger. Farrell, 32, is from Ireland, and has also been seen with a suspicious ring on his wedding finger. He was last known to have been dating a Irish student, but commenters say that they’ve been broken up for nearly a year.

In an interview with the newspaper The Independent in May, Driver gave three clues about the identity of the father of her baby, all of which apply to Farrell. She denied it was musician Craig Zolezzi, with whom she’s been photographed. She said they’re just good friends.

The only clues Driver will offer about the identity of her “baby daddy” are that he is English, and “sort of in the same business”, and that they have evaded detection because “he’s really busy, like me”.

[From Independent.co.uk]

People from Ireland can also be considered “English,” can’t they?

Update: There is no direct quote from Driver in that article about the nationality of her baby’s father, just the journalist’s interpretation that he’s “English.” It’s possible she said something like “He’s from the UK” and it was written as “English.”

Update: This story is based on my overactive imagination and stupidity and is probably not true. Minnie is close friends with Colin’s girlfriend, who was most likely with them at the beach that day.

This news came out a little while ago, but we missed it in the shuffle. Colin Farrell was seen wearing what looks like it could be an ornate wedding ring on his left hand. The 32 year old Irish actor was photographed at the airport in LA smoking a cigarette and talking on the phone. When he spotted photographers he put his left hand in his jacket pocket, awkwardly holding his phone on his left ear and keeping the cigarette in his mouth.

The gossip press is speculating that Colin may have secretly married his young sweetheart, student Muireann McDonnell, 22. Colin met Muireann at a party during the 2006 holidays in Dalkey outside of Dublin. She was working at a gourmet food store nearby. The two were photographed on a romantic holiday in Italy in May, 2007.

Colin was previously married to English actress Amelia Warner for five months in 2001. He has a special needs son, James, four and a half, with his ex girlfriend, model Kim Bordenave.

Farrell recently lost 20-30 pounds to play a guilt-striken journalist in war torn Bosnia in Triage, a film adaptation of a 1998 novel by Scott Anderson. These latest photos look as if he’s gained a few essential pounds back. His character isn’t married, according to the synopsis of the book I read on Wikipedia (spoilers in that link obviously), so it’s not probable that he’s wearing the ring for the film.

Congratulations to Farrell if he’s married. If he’s not, then many of his fans will breathe a sigh of relief.

Colin Farrell drew alarm a couple weeks ago when a photo came out like of him looking extremely emaciated and like a shadow of the buff Irish actor with a heart we know and love.

He lost the weight, which looks like 20-30 pounds off an already-thin frame, for a role. Farrell plays a Spanish photojournalist in war-torn Bosnia in the early 1990s in the film Triage, based on a novel by Scott Anderson. His character is torn apart by guilt and regret for the difficult choices he’s forced to make in an effort to survive.

Farrell said in a press conference that he lost the weight because my role demanded it” and added “It was all very healthy.”

Either the earlier photos made Farrell look deceptively gaunt or he’s added some much-needed weight back, because these latest photos on set have Farrell looking too-thin but still healthy. It could be all the clothes he’s wearing but he’s not scary skinny looking to me here. I would still fail to check him out if he was walking down the street, unlike the buffer, more clean cut Colin of days past.

Thanks to WENN for these photos, taken today in Dublin.

Former bad boy Colin Farrell has a lot of eyebrows raised in his direction over his recent extreme weight loss. He says that he did it for his role in the upcoming film Triage, and even had a passage at the ready to explain his gaunt look to reporters.

Why is Colin Farrell looking so thin? At a recent press conference in Spain, the usually fit actor stunned reporters with his appearance – not to mention what he said. “I lost weight because my role demanded it,” Farrell told reporters simply of his upcoming film, Triage. “It was all very healthy.”

The actor also referred to the Scott Anderson novel on which Triage is based, reading the sentences that inspired his dramatic weight loss: “He went to the bathroom to shave. Once his beard was gone he saw that his face had become drawn. He pressed at the hollows beneath his eyes, the pronounced nubs of his cheekbones.”

“Amen,” director Danis Tanovic followed, breaking the tension. Everyone – including Farrell – laughed. Farrell spent five weeks in Alicante, Spain, filming Triage, in which he plays a war reporter in Bosnia in the early 1990s. The actor also spoke of his great respect for war reporters “spending time in war zones to tell stories that capture the imagination – as well as for their wives and girlfriends.”

[From People]

I suppose that’s an acceptable reason for an actor, but holy cow. Talk about method acting. Farrell really took it to an extreme – his face is more than drawn. It’s gaunt. He’s also been demonstrating a bit more bizarre behavior, at least according to Page Six.

Colin Farrell may be taking his war-photographer role in “Triage” too far. The lusty leprechaun has lost so much weight for the part, he’s almost unrecognizable, and he was spotted Tuesday in New York acting loopy. “He was looking at ties in Bloomingdale’s and faking a Spanish accent to the cashier,” said our spy. “He was rail thin. One customer asked ‘Are you Colin?’ And he said, ‘Who’s that?’ in a weird fake voice and stormed off.” Farrell’s rep said “he’s in Spain shooting a film.”

[From Page Six]

Thank you so much, ever helpful Colin Farrell rep. We’re well aware he’s shooting a film in Spain. However due to a wonderful little invention called the airplane, that doesn’t mean that he can’t be in New York for a day or two. So just saying that he’s in Spain is certainly not a denial or an explanation. It’s just a wussy way of giving a “no comment.” I am totally going to spend the rest of today sitting outside of Bloomingdale’s in an attempt to spot Colin Farrell. Or a homeless drug addict. Because I could easily mistake one for the other at this point.

Picture note by Celebitchy: Header image is from Mr. Paparazzi via The Sun.

Farrell with his mom, Rita, at the Oscars
This week’s In Touch has a new interview with Colin Farrell in which he talks candidly about being a father and how he proud he is of his son, James, 4 1/2. James has a genetic condition called Angelman Syndrome, which is considered to be rare and is often misdiagnosed as cerebral palsy or autism. People with Angelman Syndrome suffer from developmental and physical delays, speech problems and an inability to speak, and often have epilepsy. They are affectionate, enjoy human contact and are said to be able to communicate nonverbally in ways that exceed their speech, which can be limited to about 5 to 10 words.

Farrell told In Touch that he would rather “be home with my boy than out on the town,” and that he’s “just a blessed father to have this boy in my life.” James’ mom is Farrel’s ex girlfriend, model Kim Bordenave:

Has being a dad changed you?
Being a father kind of pushes you to an extreme of gentility and strength at the same time that you never thought could possibly reside in you. But I’m fairly sensitive, anyway!

What’s James like?
He’s an amazing child and the way he’s meant to be. I’m just a blessed father to have this boy in my life.

How is he doing these days?
Now, he’s great. When he took his first steps last year, there wasn’t a dry eye in the house.

Thats must have been a happy moment.
He’s a happy boy and if you can honestly say that your child is happy, then you’re a very, very fortunate man.

What does he look like?
Many people think he looks like me. Lucky little man!

Where is home these days?
Wherever I find myself. Dublin will always be home. But I definitely do live in LA, too, for work and my boy.

You haven’t been seen out much lately.
Quite honestly, I’d rather be home with my boy than out on the town.

When you came to Hollywood, you were anointed the newest It Boy - what was that like?
All of the attention confused me from the get-go. At the same time, I found it enlightening to see how you could go from being no one to someone in just a short time.

Did you enjoy the attention?
Oh, I’ve enjoyed being famous! But I don’t think I would have had the patience to be in this business for even a month if I was chasing something as elusive as fame.

[From In Touch, print edition, March 3, 2008]

Farrell first revealed his son’s diagnosis last October, when he expressed many similar sentiments, saying that his son has shown “amazing courage” and is an “incredibly happy boy.” He said James enriches his life and that he is dedicated to help him reach his potential in life. He also said that the only time he remembers that there’s something wrong with him is when he sees him around other children his age.

People with Angelman Syndrome have an average life span, and it sounds like James has a loving father with the resources to make sure that he’s well cared for and comfortable for the rest of his life.

At Sunday’s Oscar ceremony, Farrell introduced the performance by Irish musicians Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova, who later won best song for “Falling Slowly” from Once. Farrel brought his mom, Rita Farrell, as his date. When I first saw these pictures I thought he was dating a cougar because his mom is hot!

Farrell currently stars as a likable hitman in In Bruges, which is getting good reviews and is out in theaters in limited release.

Thanks to Splash for these photos.

Rumors have been floating around for a while that several actors may fill in for the late Heath Ledger in his last, unfinished film, “The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus.” Today Colin Farrell confirmed that he, Johnny Depp, and Jude Law will share the remaining parts of Heath Ledger’s role.

“I will be honored to be part of that,” the actor told the Herald Sun.

Farrell, Jude Law and Johnny Depp will split what remains of Ledger’s role.

“It makes me feel uncomfortable to think about it too much and to get into it really here but it’s an incredibly painful honour to have, you know, and an honour I wish wasn’t bestowed but an honour none-the-less,” Farrell said.

“It’s about getting Heath’s work out there, get his work out there, he’s too good for any of his work not to be seen, you know, and I’m really keen and looking forward to doing it and just doing the best job I can do,” the actor added.

[From Us Weekly]

Christopher Pummer, who also stars in the film, said that the film deals with magic, so it’s possible to alter the script a little in a way that will explain why Ledger’s character looks different. He also said that they’ll probably use some CGI imagery as well.

In other Colin Farrell news, he will be the best man at his brother’s same sex marriage ceremony this spring – and he’s paying for the whole thing. Eamonn Farrell is getting married in Provincetown, Massachusetts to his longtime partner. Colin’s four-year-old son James will be the ring bearer. Colin has really brought his A-game the last few years since he’s become a father. James is a special needs child, and Farrell has done a lot to bring attention to the Special Olympics and other worthy causes – along with a lot of smaller random acts of kindness that haven’t been widely reported on by the mainstream press. Colin is said to be very happy for his brother, and the whole wedding will be a family affair.

“Colin is the best brother in the world to Eamonn. So Eamonn asked him to be the best man when he and Steven get married.

“Colin took Eamonn shopping for the wedding ring - and intends to pick up the tab for the wedding.”

“Colin is a firm believer in gay rights and he is proud of his brother, said the source. “Colin has played bisexual and gay roles several times in his career.”

[From The National Enquirer, print edition, February 18, 2008]

Colin also told “The Advocate” that love is what’s important, not sexual preference. He seems to have a really wonderful and loving attitude towards his whole family, and his comments about taking Heath Ledger’s role were very humble and beautiful. I’m sure all three actors will bring a lot of depth and compassion to the experience.

Here’s Colin Farrell at a panel discussion for Arthur Levine’s book ‘Click’ on October 22nd. Images thanks to PR Photos.

When I first read this story I thought it must have been something cooked up by a journalist with an overactive imagination, and it very well might be, but movie site Ain’t It Cool News is reporting that the director of the film Heath Ledger left unfinished when he died, The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus, has three big names in mind to take over for his character. Since the film is a fantasy in which Ledger’s character could easily change into someone else, all three replacement actors may pay tribute to Heath with performances:

Have I mentioned how much I love this idea? Because I do. I think it’s beautiful that the script loaned itself to this sort of idea, that we’re going to see Heath Ledger’s work in Terry Gilliam’s new film, and that we’re also going to see three very interesting actors step up to offer interpretations of him as a way of paying one final tribute to this actor whose career was cut so sadly short.

We’ve heard rumors about who might be stepping in, but now we’ve got the names verified. Count on it.

JOHNNY DEPP.

JUDE LAW.

COLIN FARRELL.

Nice choices, Gilliam. Can’t wait to see what happens inside the IMAGINARIUM OF DR. PARNASSUS, and I’d love to get a look at the script they’re going to use as they start this next stretch of shooting on the film.

[From Ain't It Cool News]

Ain’t It Cool News has a good reputation for getting insider information on films and this could be true. About three weeks ago unreliable British source The Sun wrote that Imaginarium director Terry Gilliam wanted Johnny Depp to take over Heath’s part. There’s a scene in which Heath’s character falls through a magic mirror, and Cinematical quotes a studio source as saying “He could change into another character after that and that is where Johnny would come in.”

Back when that story came out, the movie was in shutdown mode following the death of Ledger, and workers on the film thought it wouldn’t come back. The star of the film, Christopher Plummer, has said that Heath’s final scenes would be created using CGI imagery, and he did suggest that other actors would be used. He is quoted as saying that “Because the film deals with magic, there is a way of turning Heath into other people, and then use stills and computer generated imagery.”

Maybe Heath’s character will get turned into three other top actors. It’s exciting to think that Depp, Law and Farrell might play in this film. I bet Daniel Day Lewis would be happy to be involved too, as he dedicated his SAG Award to Heath and seemed to be very affected by his death.

The evocative header image was created by /film.

Colin Farrell really has been shaking my world’s very foundation. The former playboy/love ‘em and leave ‘em guy is now a do-gooder. He has a special needs son that he’s really involved with and seems to love unconditionally, he’s involved with Amnesty International, and he randomly took a homeless man shopping when he was in Toronto. Who knows what caused the dramatic change in his personality, but either way it seems like he’s changed for the better and is doing a lot of good with his fame. Recently he attended the Special Olympics and took time out to meet Lorraine Burke, a 13-year-old who won two fourth place medals for horse riding in the games.

ONE of Inishowen’s Special Olympics’ champs is still reeling from meeting some of the world’s biggest movie stars on a day the youngster will never forget. As she celebrated her 13th birthday on Sunday, Burt youngster Lorraine Burke, who bagged two fourth places for horse riding in the Shanghai games, has become a star in her own right. But her proud mother Colette said a special thank you to the stars who supported the momentous event.

Lucky Lorraine, not only did Buncrana and Ireland proud in the games, but was the envy of most young ladies across the world, when she met Hollywood actor, and Dubliner Colin Farrell backstage at the event. The star of Miami Vice, who is himself father to a four-year-old special needs child, James, took time out of his busy schedule to meet Scoil Iosagain pupil Lorraine. Heart throb Farrell’s son has a rare form of cerebral palsy known as Angelman Syndrome, which affects his speech and motor skills. Recently the youngster took his first steps and his dad has spoken about his joy at this important milestone.

Lorraine’s proud mum Colette said: “Colin was at the opening ceremony as patron of the games. He came to meet Lorraine backstage. It was amazing. “He must be a really caring guy, he’s got the Irish charm. I am delighted he took the time to meet Lorraine. All Lorraine could say afterwards, was that she had a ball.”

[From the Derry Journal]

Colin Farrell was reasonably sexy before, but I think he’s a lot sexier now with all of his do-goodery (yes I made that word up and no I won’t change it). I’m guessing Colin’s son had a lot to do with him changing his ways, and it seems like he’s really stepped up to the plate, not just for his son but in terms of being more socially active in general.

Picture note by Celebitchy: Colin Farrell is shown on 10/22 at a panel discussion at the Borders on Columbus Circle in NY for the collaborative novel Click, a mystery written by ten authors including Nick Hornby, Roddy Doyle and Gregory Maguire, with the proceeds to benefit Amnesty International. Farrel was there as part of his work with Amnesty International.