Colin Farrell learned a hard lesson about live television this week. The Irish actor let loose with a string of curse words during a Fox soccer broadcast. He had no idea cameras were rolling.
Farrell joined Tuesday’s episode of “FIFA World Cup on FOX After Hours with James Corden” for casual commentary. Things quickly got colorful. The actor treated the segment like a private conversation. He dropped curse words left and right while breaking down the sport for viewers.
Live television leaves no room for take-backs. One unfiltered moment can instantly become the internet’s favorite clip. Farrell just found that out firsthand.
“It’s a tough sport, despite what Americans say, ‘It’s for p—sies,'” Farrell said in one clip.
He wasn’t done.
“I’m not making this sh-t up because y’all see it every day,” he continued, later calling something “just chef’s kiss s—t.”
The moment everything unraveled came when Farrell spotted a wax figure sitting in the corner of the studio. He turned to Corden and asked, “Who the f—k is that in the corner?”
Corden had to step in fast.
“Let me tell you two things,” Corden said. “Number one, that’s the waxwork Pelé from Madame Tussauds. And number two: this is live.” The panel lost it. Farrell sat in stunned silence as the reality hit him.
“I didn’t know that,” he admitted. “It might not have been that different, but I didn’t know that. I would’ve liked to have known that.” He tried to blame the confusion on the show’s name. “Wait, it’s called ‘Live with…?’ No it’s not, it’s called After Hours.”
This wasn’t Farrell’s first rodeo with hot mic moments. Back in September, he dropped an F-bomb on the Today show while promoting “A Big Beautiful Journey” with Margot Robbie. That time, he knew the cameras were live and slipped up anyway while gushing over a Tayto sandwich, according to EW.
On Fox Sports’ Instagram, viewers found the entire exchange hilarious, with many saying Farrell’s reaction was even funnier than the profanity itself.
“BS that they didn’t tell him,” one person wrote. Another joked, “Ooops! His face changed immediately! Great actor!” while someone else declared, “That’s a legend your country will never produce.”
Others praised his personality, writing, “Colin Farrell comes across as one of the nicest guys in Hollywood,” and simply, “Colin is too funny.” Several fans even campaigned to keep him on the broadcast.
“@rtesport sign Colin up quickly as a pundit for the rest of the World Cup,” one person urged, while another added, “Get him on every night.”
Many also chalked up the swearing to his Irish roots. “This is punctuation for Irish lads,” one commenter joked. Another wrote, “Colin without swearing? Not gonna happen. It’s in his Irish genes,” while someone else added, “He can’t help it! He’s Irish; it’s in the vocabulary.”
One fan summed up the overall sentiment: “Colin is all of us. Love him.”
The viral clip comes on the heels of Farrell turning 50, and he’s been getting real about what that milestone means to him. During a June 24 appearance on “The View,” co-host Joy Behar asked him straight up how he feels about aging.
Farrell didn’t dodge the question.
“I love getting older,” he said. “I feel that in your teens, your 20s, your 30s, you’re constantly trying to look for who you are, who you are in relation to the world around you, if your life has meaning, if you’re worthy of having a life, and all these ways. And as you get older, that stuff kind of fades away.”
He also got philosophical about mortality.
“It’s the one thing, all of us, it’s been said before 1000 times,” he said. Behar wasn’t having it. “Not me. I’m not going. I am telling you, I’m not going!” she shot back.
Farrell laughed and clapped back, “I hope it’s a long time away. But that Grim Reaper is coming for you, as well, sister!” He wrapped the segment on a high note. “I love being 50,” Farrell said.
Career-wise, Farrell isn’t slowing down.
He’s currently promoting Season 2 of “Sugar” on Apple TV, which dropped its first episode June 19, with new installments running through Aug. 7.
He’s also lined up for “Bad Bridgets,” an Irish period thriller from “Kneecap” director Rich Peppiatt, according to Variety. Filming kicks off this July in Northern Ireland, and Farrell will share the screen with Steve Coogan, Domhnall Gleeson and Emilia Jones.
Through the cursing, the birthday reflections, and the steady stream of new projects, fans keep coming back to one thing: Farrell’s authenticity. His unfiltered personality may have landed him in an embarrassing live TV moment, but judging by the reaction online, it only made audiences like him even more.
Farrell might’ve embarrassed himself on live television, but his fans wouldn’t have him any other way.