Colin Farrell Interview: Finding Joy in Gotham Again, Big Macs & Late-Night Texts with Oscar Winners

For Colin Farrell and Fala Chen, collaboration isn’t just part of the job, it’s the heartbeat of their work. In Ballad of a Small Player, the two actors star opposite each other in a story as layered and unpredictable as the performances at its center. Directed by Edward Berger, the film explores identity, risk, and reinvention through characters who must constantly navigate the line between control and surrender. For Farrell and Chen, that meant leaning into trust, instinct, and what Chen calls "a throw-things-on-the-wall kind of energy" to see what might crack open a scene. The story follows Lord Doyle (Farrell), a high-rolling British gambler whose life is unraveling among the chaotic glamor of Macau’s casino circuit. When Doyle encounters a mysterious compatriot, his desperate bid for redemption quickly spirals into obsession, danger, and an unsettling dive into the psyche of a man who has run out of luck. Ahead of the film’s release, Collider’s Perri Nemiroff interviewed Farrell and Chen, where the stars reflect on the kind of scene partnership that reshapes performances, the confidence Berger gave them to take big creative swings, and the freedom that comes when a set feels truly collaborative. They also share the story behind one late-night text that ended up making it into the final film, and Farrell closes the conversation with a quick tease about returning to Gotham in The Batman: Part II. #colinfarrell #interview #batman #penguin #netflix For interviews, movie reviews, and more visit https://collider.com FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL   / collider     / collider     / collider