In Bruges stars Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson reunite for new Martin McDonagh comedy The Banshees of Inisherin
For Colin Farrell, reuniting with Brendan Gleeson on-screen 14 years after they made the award-winning In Bruges felt like having “the band back together”.
“Me and him have been circling each other in the interim, you know… and it was just like bringing the band back together,” Farrell told Sky News.
It was playwright Martin McDonagh who first cast the pair in his 2008 cinematic debut, now considered a modern classic.
Barry Keoghan also stars in the film. Pic: 20th Century Studios
Since then, the filmmaker went on to make the Oscar-winning film Three Billboards, while in the background he was receiving some gentle nudging from his former leading men.
“We kind of said, we hoped, hopefully we can do this again,” Farrell confesses.
The Banshees of Inisherin is worth the wait. The darkly comic drama is like few films you’ll see in the cinema.
Set on a remote imaginary island off the Irish Coast in the 1920s, Gleeson’s character decides he’s sick to the teeth of his needy friend (Farrell) and doesn’t want to waste any more time chatting to him.
He raises the stakes by threatening to chop off a finger every time his dull pal tries to strike up a conversation.
When Sky News puts it to Gleason that it’s painful to see how cruel he is to Farrell, he laughs.
“See you misunderstand…” Gleeson teases.
Before Farrell interrupts: “That’s what he’s always doing – putting the blame back…”
“You know, watch it the second time. I think you’ll see…” Gleeson insists.
“Watch it the third time, you go back to your first perspective!” Farrell teases again.
McDonagh admits a trilogy might just be on the cards, saying: “You know, we might not be around in 14 years. So, we sort have agreed on seven years gap between films is just about right. But I have no idea what that will be.”
Farrell – who says he struggles to watch himself on screen, says there is something “extraordinary” about McDonagh’s writing.
“I was shocked when I saw the film and, to be honest I’ve said it before ad nauseam, it’s true, I have very little keen objectivity in relation to films that I’m in. There’s too much s*** going on in my own head and I ruin it, my presence ruins things for me.
“But when I watch this, the one thing I came away with that I thought was extraordinary, was how much empathy I had for [Brendan’s] character.”
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Farrell says what’s incredible is how McDonagh “blurs the line between good and bad and right and wrong…”
Gleeson adds: “We’re the two sides of his heart and the two sides of his head… and it was the same on In Bruges. ‘Bruges is a s*** hole, it’s not a s*** hole’…”
“It’s a s*** hole!” Farrell shouts as if a reflex.
“14-years later,” he then says, shaking his head, “f***!”
The two are back to their well-tuned, X-rated patter, suggesting that In Bruges fans have plenty to look forward to in the latest instalment of McDonagh’s black comedy.
The Banshees of Inisherin is out in cinemas on Friday.
Russell Brand has been charged with rape and two counts of sexual assault between 1999 and 2005.
The Metropolitan Police say the 50-year-old comedian, actor and author has also been charged with one count of oral rape and one count of indecent assault.
The charges relate to four women.
He is due to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Friday 2 May.
Police have said Brand is accused of raping a woman in the Bournemouth area in 1999 and indecently assaulting a woman in the Westminster area of London in 2001.
He is also accused of orally raping and sexually assaulting a woman in Westminster in 2004.
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Ashna Hurynag discusses Russell Brand’s charges
The fourth charge alleges that a woman was sexually assaulted in Westminster between 2004 and 2005.
Police began investigating Brand, from Oxfordshire, in September 2023 after receiving a number of allegations.
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The comedian has denied the accusations and said he has “never engaged in non-consensual activity”.
He added in a video on X: “Of course, I am now going to have the opportunity to defend these charges in court, and I’m incredibly grateful for that.”
Metropolitan Police Detective Superintendent Andy Furphy, who is leading the investigation, said: “The women who have made reports continue to receive support from specially trained officers.
“The Met’s investigation remains open and detectives ask anyone who has been affected by this case, or anyone who has any information, to come forward and speak with police.”
Tom Cruise has paid tribute to Val Kilmer, wishing his Top Gun co-star “well on the next journey”.
Cruise, speaking at the CinemaCon film event in Las Vegas on Thursday, asked for a moment’s silence to reflect on the “wonderful” times shared with the star, whom he called a “dear friend”.
Kilmer, who died of pneumonia on Tuesday aged 65, rocketed to fame starring alongside Cruise in the 1986 blockbuster Top Gun, playing Tom ‘Iceman’ Kazansky, a rival fighter pilot to Cruise’s character Maverick.
Tom Cruise said ‘I wish you well on the next journey’. Pic: AP
Val Kilmer in 2017. Pic: AP
His last part was a cameo role in the 2022 blockbuster sequel Top Gun: Maverick.
Cruise, on stage at Caesars Palace on Thursday, said: “I’d like to honour a dear friend of mine, Val Kilmer. I can’t tell you how much I admire his work, how grateful and honoured I was when he joined Top Gun and came back later for Top Gun: Maverick.
“I think it would be really nice if we could have a moment together because he loved movies and he gave a lot to all of us. Just kind of think about all the wonderful times that we had with him.
“I wish you well on the next journey.”
The moment of silence followed a string of tributes from Hollywood figures including Cher, Francis Ford Coppola, Antonio Banderas and Michelle Monaghan.
Kilmer’s daughter Mercedes told the New York Times on Wednesday that the actor had died from pneumonia.
Tom Cruise at Caesars Palace on Thursday. Pic: AP
Diagnosed with throat cancer in 2014, Kilmer discussed his illness and recovery in his 2020 memoir Your Huckleberry and Amazon Prime documentary Val.
He underwent radiation and chemotherapy treatments for the disease and also had a tracheostomy which damaged his vocal cords and permanently gave him a raspy speaking voice.
Kilmer played Batman in the 1995 film Batman Forever and received critical acclaim for his portrayal of rock singer Jim Morrison in the 1991 movie The Doors.
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He also starred in True Romance and Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, as well as playing criminal Chris Shiherlis in Michael Mann’s 1995 movie Heat and Doc Holliday in the 1993 film Tombstone.
In 1988 he married British actress Joanne Whalley, whom he met while working on fantasy adventure Willow.
The couple had two children before divorcing in 1996.
Bruce Springsteen is to release seven albums of mostly unheard material this summer.
The US singer said the songs, written and re-recorded between 1983 and 2018, were being made public after he began completing “everything I had in my vault” during the COVID-19 pandemic.
In a short video posted on Instagram, Springsteen said the albums were “records that were full records, some of them even to the point of being mixed and not released”.
The 83-song collection is being released in a box set called Tracks II: The Lost Albums and goes on sale on 27 June.
Some 74 of the tracks have never been heard before.
Springsteen first teased the release on Wednesday morning with a short social media video accompanied by text which said: “What was lost has been found”.
Tracks II is the follow-up to the star’s first Tracks volume, a four-CD collection of 66 unreleased songs, released in 1998.
Bruce Springsteen at New York’s Carnegie Hall at a tribute to Patti Smith last month. Pic: PA
The New Jersey-born rocker, nicknamed The Boss, last released a studio album in 2022.
Only the Strong Survive was a collection of covers, including songs by Motown and soul artists, such as the Four Tops, The Temptations, The Supremes, Frankie Wilson and Jimmy Ruffin.
The late soul legend Sam Moore, who died in January and was a frequent Springsteen collaborator, sang on two of the tracks.
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Springsteen is coming to the UK in May to launch a two-month tour of Europe with his E Street Band.
The shows will include performances at the Co-op Live in Manchester and Liverpool’s Anfield stadium.
The singer-songwriter has sold more than 140 million records since his debut on the music scene in 1973, according to his website.
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