Colin Farrell praises his son James for helping him get sober

James lives with Angelman syndrome

James (22) lives with Angelman syndrome, a genetic condition that affects development, speech, and movement, and can lead to seizures. People with Angelman syndrome tend to be expressively happy.

Alongside his The Slightest Touch co-star Emma Forgarty, who suffers from Epidermolysis Bullosa (EB), Colin Farrell told Brendan O'Connor how James became his motivation for getting sober.

"When I did the rehab... it was a 12-step program, a 12-step AA program. So it was very much about the higher power. And at that stage, I had a bit of a beef with my limited conception of what God may or may not be.

"So I was like, 'ah, no, none of that, thanks', but I did realise that I need to look to something outside of myself for both strength and guidance, or even the idea of really, really unfiltered love, you know, and love without condition, and James represented that in my life.

"When I had my little homework folder... I had pictures of James on the cover of the folder, and it was really like, you know, people say you have to do it for yourself.

"You know, you have to get sober for yourself. If you go into rehab, you might not care enough about yourself [to try to get better... so James, he's needed me in a very practical way, the way children need their parents, but then it came quickly to me, very fast, how clearly and how much I needed him."

The Castleknock native praised his son for being an 'amazing young man' and shared that despite James' physical and emotional limitations, James is 'one of the happiest human beings, he knows'.

Farrell went on to say how he's come to terms with how people can be rather pitiful when they meet James, despite him living a full and happy life.

"I’ve struggled with[that]... I've had a couple of people say to me through the years, always with an Irish accent. So it's even on its way to potentially more forgiveness straight away, by virtue of its origin.

"But I've had two women I can remember and hearing about James going the poor, the poor thing... I could feel a little pinch inside as a dad wanting to go, 'What do you mean, you poor thing? He's happier than any of us', but I didn't take offence because I knew it came from a place of care."