Cliff Notes – Tom Cruise ‘wasn’t happy’ with Hollywood actor who needed 46 takes to film scene after bender
- Colin Farrell admitted to struggling on set of Minority Report after a night of heavy drinking, leading to 46 takes of a single scene.
- The actor’s dishevelled appearance and performance reportedly left co-star Tom Cruise “not very happy” during filming.
- Farrell later reflected on his past struggles with addiction, crediting his son for motivating his sobriety after checking into rehab in 2005.
Tom Cruise ‘wasn’t happy’ with Hollywood actor who needed 46 takes to film scene after bender
Colin Farrell has revealed he left Tom Cruise fuming after going on a bender the night before they filmed a huge Hollywood blockbuster.
The Irish actor, 49, was cast in Steven Spielberg’s 2002 science fiction action film Minority Report alongside the Hollywood heavyweight, 63.
However, one day on set got a little awkward after Colin struggled to get through a scene following a big night out.
Recalling what unfolded during an appearance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert this week, the actor fessed up.
Calling it ‘one of the worst days I’ve ever had on a film set’, Colin explained he wanted to get out of having to work on his birthday – but was denied the request.
‘It was my birthday on May 31, and we were shooting, and I begged production — who did I think I was? — of a $120 million film if they [could] not have me working on my birthday,’ he said.
A Hollywood actor has outed himself for stuffing up a scene with Tom Cruise 46 times (Picture: Angela Weiss/ AFP via Getty Images)
Colin Farrell went on a massive night out before he filmed Minority Report (Picture: The Late Show with Stephen Colbert)
‘So of course my pickup was 6 a.m. on May 31, and I got up to all sorts of nonsense the night before.
‘And I remember getting into bed, and as soon as I turned off the light the phone rang and it was the driver, [who] said, “It’s 10 past 6”. And I went, “Oh s***”.’
He went on to explain that he turned up to set looking so dishevelled, the movie’s second assistant director, David H. Venghaus Jr. tried to intervene.
‘I got out of the car, and he went, “You can’t go to the set like this”. And I went, “Just get me six Pacifico Cervezas and a packet of 20 [Marlboro] Red”.’
Turning to the talk show’s audience, he added: ‘Now, listen, it’s not cool because two years later I went to rehab, right? But it worked in the moment. All the holy people that we look to on how to live a life would say the present is all that counts.’
Continuing to explain what unfolded on the set, Farrell said he had a ‘couple of beers’ and went to work.
‘It was terrible. I will never forget the line I had that I couldn’t get out. It was, “I’m sure you’ve all grasped the fundamental paradox of pre-crime methodology”. That was the line that started the scene.’
He said his co-star was ‘not very happy’ with him (Picture: Dreamworks/ Kobal/ Shutterstock)
However he was struggling so much, a crew member stopped him and asked the actor if he wanted to take a break.
‘I remember thinking, “If I go out and take a breath of fresh air, then I’ll be under more pressure when I come back in to be better”. And I went, “No, we’ll just go through it”.’
Despite his best intentions, Farrell’s performance didn’t get much better.
‘We did 46 takes. Tom wasn’t very happy with me. Tom, who I love, was not very happy!’ he added.
Despite the difficulties on that day, Minority Report was a massive hit when it was eventually released in cinemas.
It received positive reviews from critics and grossed over $358 million (£248million) against a production budget of $102 million (£72million). It was also nominated for an Academy Award.
Farrell once infamously summed up his past addictions saying he’d been ‘drunk or high since I was 14’.
The actor joked about going to rehab a few years later (Picture: Rodin Eckenroth/ WireImage)
In 2005 he checked into rehab and has been sober since 2006.
He previously credited his son James, 21, for sparking his sobriety. His eldest child has Angelman syndrome, a neurological condition which can cause movement disorder, difficulty swallowing, slow brain wave patterns, epilepsy, low muscle tone and breathing problems.
‘Part of the fuel that I used to get off alcohol and drugs and all that stuff was knowing he had health issues. All children need their parents — or a parent or grandparent or somebody — to care for them,’ he said.
‘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.’
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