Colin Farrell Says He’ll 'Catch Up' onThe Sopranos,Breaking BadandThe Wire'When I Grow Up'

Mar. 15, 2025

Colin Farrell.Photo:Theo Wargo/Getty

Theo Wargo/Getty

Colin Farrellhas some catching up to do on classic television dramas!

While speaking to reporters, including PEOPLE at the New York City premiere ofThe Penguinon Tuesday, Sept. 17, Farrell was told that his portrayal as the Gotham City villain Oswald “Oz” Cobb, has been compared toThe Sopranos. Farrell, 48, first played the character in 2022’sThe Batman.

Colin Farrell attends HBO’s “The Penguin” New York Premiere.Cindy Ord/WireImage

Cindy Ord/WireImage

“I’ve only seen two episodes. I haveSopranos, I haveBreaking Badand someday when I grow up, I haveThe Wireto catch up on, which are the three I think of when I think of extraordinary television,” Farrell said at the Jazz at Lincoln Center.

The Golden Globe Award winner added that he takes it as a compliment that his work is compared to the mob crime drama, which ran for six seasons beginning in 1999.

“That, kind of, in their time, changed the face of television and opened up possibilities for other shows,” Farrell said.

Colin Farrell and Henry Farrell attend HBO’s “The Penguin” New York Premiere.Cindy Ord/WireImage

The evening also marked a special occasion for Farrell, who walked the red carpet withhis youngest son, Henry Tadeusz Farrell, 14. The actor is also a father to21-year-old James Padraig Farrell.

Farrell previously admitted during a 2022 appearance onTheEllen DeGeneresShowthat his two sonsdon’t have much interestin his work.

“They’re sick of me being a bad guy,” he said at the time. “Which apparently, reading between the lines, leads me to believe that they think I’m okay.”

Colin Farrell - The Penguin.Macall Polay/Max

Macall Polay/Max

InThe Penguin,Farrell underwent drastic changesto become the famed antagonist.

“Do you ever see cats looking at themselves in the mirror? How they recoil and they just don’t know [it’s them]?” he told PEOPLE and other outlets of his on-screen appearance, adding, “It was strange.”

“It’s not like I ever fully lost sense of myself, but it was a very powerful thing to know yourself a certain way for 45 years and to see a reflection. And it also kind of made me aware of how much I identified with how I look,” he continued.

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Despite the transformation, Farrell called the process “amazing.”

“It was really, really powerful. It was something very powerful and very kind of hypnotic to the experience,” he said.

Cristin Milioti,Rhenzy Feliz, Michael Kelly, Shohreh Aghdashloo, Deirdre O’Connell, Clancy Brown andMichael Zegenalso star in the eight-episode series.

The Penguinpremieres on Thursday, Sept. 19, at 9 p.m. on HBO and Max.

source: people.com