Colin Farrell Helps Friend In A Wheelchair Complete Dublin Marathon

What do you think of when you hear the name Colin Farrell? Having starred in a whole list of highly-acclaimed films, like In Bruges and The Batman, there are many versions of the actor that may come to mind. But Farrell isn’t solely known for his incredible acting abilities. He’s also proven to be quite the advocate for disabled folks. For starters, he has a son who was diagnosed with Angelman syndrome, leaving him nonverbal and in need of significant care.

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In turn, Farrell uses his platform as an actor to raise awareness and money for the disorder. But his son isn’t the only person who gets his support. Farrell’s close friend, Emma Fogarty, has a rare skin condition called Epidermolysis Bullosa (EB). This means her skin is fragile, making it far too easy for her to get blisters and tears. Life expectancy for folks with this diagnosis is only 30 years.

That is why, in part, it’s such a big deal for Emma that she recently celebrated her 40th birthday. To mark this amazing milestone, she chose to partake in the 2024 Dublin Marathon on Sunday. To do so, she was pushed in a wheelchair. Loved ones took on the role of pushing her in the race, including Farrell himself. In fact, he’s the one that helped get her to the finish line!

“I just wanted to say a massive thank you to everyone,” Emma shares. “… I’m so excited and extremely emotional. As many of you know, the reason I’ve done this is because I’ve hit the big 40 this year, and I wanted to mark it in a huge way. But, it’s you—the public—that’s made it even bigger and more special than ever.”

After the race, Farrell and Emma spoke about how incredible it was to participate in the race. The actor also takes this as a chance to talk about how much he admires his friend.

It’s clear that by joining this race, the friendship between Farrell and Emma has only been strengthened. Plus, in doing so, they’ve also managed to raise close to €700,000 (that’s $755,000) for charity. More specifically, the money was raised for Debra, an organization that raises awareness for EB and advocates for those who have it. Incredible!

This story’s featured image is by NBC/Getty Images.