Colin Farrell plays aliens in the Apple TV series Sugar, but does he believe they actually exist?
“Do I believe that there are faraway lands, faraway ethers, celestial beings that our limited intellects may not be able to comprehend? Yes, of course,” Farrell says. “They probably know of our existence, maybe visit us, maybe move among us, nay, move among us in all kinds of ways…I don’t want to think of evil ways, but maybe I’m an idealist, and if I am, that’s fine.”
I met Farrell on Wednesday night at the Season 2 premiere of Sugar at the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles.
Not only is “Sugar” set in Los Angeles, but the series is also filmed there. As Gene Maddaus of Variety magazine reports in the magazine’s latest issue, Los Angeles continues to struggle to attract productions.
“It was magical to film and see it here. It’s very rare for shows and pictures to be filmed in Los Angeles because it’s not cheap and the tax breaks are terrible,” Farrell said. “It’s great to be able to do that here. Everyone was able to be home with their families and just go to work and do their jobs. We have a great staff here. You won’t find better technicians and craftsmen.”
Executive producer Simon Kinberg said filming in Los Angeles was “such a dream”. “I’ve rarely filmed here in my career, but I’ve always wanted to be here… All the artists I know who live in Los Angeles, including myself, want to film here. We write things that happen here, and once in a while we shoot here on a show like this, which is very rare.”
Kinberg last worked on a project in Los Angeles for his first film 25 years ago. “I fell out of bed,” he said. “I thought this was my whole life. It’s sad.”
Mr. Kinberg echoed Mr. Farrell’s concerns about tax incentives.
“The rebate obviously helps a little bit, but it’s not as competitive as rebates in other states and other countries,” he said. “A lot of times, shows and movies have stars who fight hard for the authenticity of being in Los Angeles. In this case, Colin was fighting for that, and that really helped.”
In other Farrell news, he recently made a rare public appearance unrelated to his project, attending a screening of Disclosure Day with his Minority Report co-star Tom Cruise.
A photo circulating on social media showed Pharrell, Cruise and Dakota Fanning holding Spielberg’s signature popcorn buckets. “Tom is a very fun guy, he loves movies and he obviously loves the theatrical experience, and I think we all know that,” Farrell said. “So when he sent out an invitation for some of us to go to a screening of Steven Spielberg’s next movie, it was a no-brainer.”
Farrell’s next role will be reprising his role as the Penguin in Batman 2. He said he would start filming in three to four weeks, but would not be on set for “a very long time, as long as I would like.”
He continued, “But I got spoiled by the show. I did that suit and that makeup for six months. It worked out for me.”
Farrell recently told ScreenRant that he will appear in only two scenes in The Batman 2.
