At the Zurich Film Festival, Colin Farrell discussed his immersive roles in Edward Berger’s gambling drama Ballad of a Small Player and his transformation into the Penguin in the HBO series inspired by Matt Reeves’ The Batman. Farrell detailed how the use of extensive makeup, especially for the Penguin character, introduced intense physical and emotional demands, deepening his performance experience. The Irish actor’s portrayal underlines his ongoing pursuit of complex, broken characters while highlighting the artistry involved in character creation through makeup.
Farrell’s Reflection on His Career and Recent Roles
Farrell’s career began with Joel Schumacher’s 2000 film Tigerland and quickly expanded to include high-profile projects like Steven Spielberg’s Minority Report, Oliver Stone’s Alexander, and Michael Mann’s Miami Vice. However, he admits the momentum stalled due to personal struggles. Returning to intense roles, Farrell now focuses on characters grappling with internal chaos and vulnerability, such as Lord Doyle, the gambling addict featured in Ballad of a Small Player.
Bringing Lord Doyle to Life: A Deep Dive into Addiction and Desperation
Playing the Macau-based high roller Lord Doyle, Farrell explored the physical and psychological disintegration of a man caught in the grip of addiction. He described Doyle as on
“the precipice of a kind of insanity”
with worsening symptoms that affect his heart, possibly anxiety or a cardiac issue. Farrell emphasized the character’s “fever-pitch energy” and emotional isolation, reflective of the spiritual emptiness addicts often face.
Farrell said,
“He’s somebody who’s on the precipice of a kind of insanity, and that also has its physical implications as well,”
and added,
“There is something going on with his heart that he doesn’t quite understand, whether it’s anxiety or whether it’s some kind of cardiac issue.”
He further explained,
“constantly anxious, fever-pitch energy, and a kind of a mania has overtaken him born of desperation. … He is living in an incredibly aggressive kind of spiritual or emotional vacuum, no connection to anyone, like addicts, regardless of what the addiction is, inevitably end up inhabiting.”
Farrell’s First Impressions of ‘Ballad of a Small Player’
The script for Ballad of a Small Player captivated Farrell immediately, though he found it unsettling due to its intense sensory experience. He described it as loud, brash, and bombastic in both tone and narrative. The story’s unique style differed from anything he had read before, enticing him to tackle the material despite its challenging nature.
Farrell recalled,
“It was so dynamic and it was so singular and like nothing I’d ever read. I find as an actor, reading things and having a certain degree of choice I’m fortunate enough to have, you either lean into something as you’re reading it or you don’t. … Inevitably I end up leaning into things that I feel I haven’t explored before just because it’s fun. It’s just really fun. It doesn’t take much for me to feel like I’m repeating myself, you know, and that can feel kind of sticky in an unfortunate way. So this was very singular. It was very unique. I’d never read anything like it. I flew through it. But I kind of felt nauseous reading it as well, because the film is, if you ever see it, it’s incredibly loud. The colors are very brash. It’s very bombastic. I mean, there’s nothing subtle about it — I will say that now. And it was the same in reading it. It was kind of an assault on the senses in reading as well.”
This project also marked a fruitful collaboration with Edward Berger, whose work Farrell admired, especially from the series Patrick Melrose. Farrell praised the storytelling, acknowledging Berger as an established artist with a growing international reputation, notably after winning the 2023 international feature Oscar for All Quiet on the Western Front.
Farrell reflected,
“Ed and I were talking about doing ‘The Ballad of the Small Player’ before ‘All Quiet on the Western Front’ came out. And then it just took off for him, just globally, internationally. He’s been an extraordinary storyteller for years. For decades he’s been working in his chosen field as an artist and writer and director.”
Discovering the Depth of the Penguin Character
Farrell’s involvement as the Penguin began with Matt Reeves’ film The Batman and evolved into the HBO series. Initially, Farrell was skeptical of this iteration of the character, recalling childhood memories of previous portrayals by Burgess Meredith and Danny DeVito. The limited scenes and script led him to question the role’s depth.
He admitted,
“I was thinking of Burgess Meredith and I was thinking of Danny DeVito … and that child who sat on the carpet in Dublin at the age of 5 watching ‘Batman’ ’66, and then at the age of 11 or 12 saw Tim Burton’s ‘Batman’ with Danny DeVito, and used to draw Batman signals on his jeans. I was like, wow, I’m so excited. The script came, I read it, and I was like, eh? I’ve only got five scenes. I got so greedy. I didn’t really get it, either. That was the shortsighted part.”
He added,
“I don’t know, it’s a bit one-note; he’s a bit silly; he’s a bit of a putz. Could this be more interesting? And I was wrong because it was there on the page. I just couldn’t see it. I had some preconceived notion or something that I was looking for, and it wasn’t that.”
The Impact of Mike Marino’s Makeup Design on Farrell’s Performance
Farrell’s understanding of the Penguin character shifted dramatically after seeing Mike Marino’s makeup design. Initially unaware of what the transformation would look like, Farrell was stunned when Matt Reeves revealed Marino’s work during a meeting. The makeup created a realistic, intricate visage, enabling Farrell to fully embody the character’s complexity.
Farrell recalled,
“And I said, ‘Yeah, we’ve been sending pictures back and forth.’ And he said, ‘Did Mike show you what you’re going to look like?’”
He continued,
“I’ll never forget, Matt went, ‘Come here, come here, come here.’ And he opened up his laptop and he went, ‘Look!’ It was the first time I saw the makeup … and the cogs crunched.”
When Farrell asked if it was CGI, Reeves confirmed it was practical makeup.
No, [Marino] said he can make you look like that and nobody’ll notice.
This tangible transformation revealed emotional layers in the character that Farrell previously missed, including underlying sadness beneath the ferocious exterior.
He described,
“I was like, that’s extraordinary. Then the script became clear to me. I could see through Mike Marino’s imagination and every little pockmark and every scar. The character was ferocious looking, but there was also, I could imagine, a sadness to aspects of that character’s life. … It just gave me so much information.”
The Experience of Becoming the Penguin Through Makeup
During screen tests, Farrell felt a unique sensation of surrendering to the character, describing the process as a kind of possession, one of the most intense he has ever experienced. Seeing his altered self in the mirror had a powerful effect, reinforcing the distance between actor and character while amplifying his performance.
He explained,
“Then we did a screen test and it was very weird. It was amazing. But it was very weird. You just give yourself over to it. There was a degree of, let’s say, possession. As close to being overtaken by something as I have ever been was on that. A lot of it was the distance that I was afforded, the seeming distance that I was afforded. It’s very powerful to look at yourself in the mirror and see that looking back at you. It was wild.”
Farrell’s Advocacy for Expanding the Penguin Story
Farrell became such an advocate for Mike Marino’s makeup work that he proposed expanding the character’s presence beyond the limited screen time initially planned. About three weeks into filming, he approached producer Dylan Clark to suggest creating a series that would showcase Marino’s artistry and explore the Penguin in greater depth.
Farrell expressed admiration for the legacy of makeup artists, noting,
“Mike’s makeup design was so extraordinary and really was very moving; it was very touching to be a part of it. I just felt like I was stepping into the lineage of artists like Dick Smith, who did the original ‘Planet of the Apes’ and did F. Murray Abraham’s makeup, Salieri, on Milos Forman’s ‘Amadeus,’ and won the Oscar for that; Dick Smith, who’s no longer with us; Mike Marino was a pupil of his, kind of an apostle of his; Rick Baker, all these extraordinary artists — Rob Bottin, who did all the makeup in ‘The Thing’ back in the days when makeup was all practical.
He added,
“So I felt doing that part, I was like a part of Hollywood history. It was really cool. But there was no plan for it. It was because the makeup was so extraordinary, I thought, this is such a waste to only have five scenes of this, not me, in it. We can do so much with this beautiful makeup that Mike designed.”
Following the film’s completion, Clark reached out to Farrell to discuss developing the series idea further for HBO. Farrell admitted they had no expectation of the overwhelming positive reception the series would receive.
Farrell recalled,
“And that was it. But we had no idea that it would be received the way it was at all. Truly. No idea.”
The Significance of Makeup in Modern Character Portrayal
Farrell’s experiences highlight the crucial role of makeup and practical effects in bringing fictional characters to life, especially in creating a believable and emotionally resonant villain like the Penguin. His collaboration with renowned artists such as Mike Marino connects him to a storied tradition of transformative makeup work that shapes the visual and psychological dimensions of film and television characters.
The success of the HBO series demonstrates how detailed physical transformation can deepen character complexity and audience engagement, inspiring further projects that celebrate the craftsmanship behind the scenes. Farrell’s commitment underscores the evolving artistry involved in performance, combining physical alteration with nuanced acting to create memorable and impactful roles.
