Colin Farrell Defends His Gay Brother in Same-Sex Marriage Plea

— -- Colin Farrell has taken to writing an op-ed to defend his brother and defend the potential of gay marriage in his native Ireland.

Farrell, 38, wrote in Ireland's Sunday World that his brother, Eamonn, "didn’t choose to be gay."

"But he was always proud of who he was. Proud and defiant and, of course, provocative," he continued. "Even when others were casting him out with fists and ridicule and the laughter of pure loathsome derision, he maintained an integrity and dignity that flew in the face of the cruelty that befell him."

Farrell added that he penned the piece because his brother was forced to marry in Canada years ago, not his native Ireland, because the country does not allow gay marriage. A vote will take place during a country-wide referendum in May to determine whether same-sex marriage will be allowed in the actor's home country.

"It’s about giving our lesbian and gay sisters and brothers back a right that should never have been stolen from them in the first place," he added.

The "Total Recall" and "True Detective" star addressed the Irish government and its people, writing that they have the chance to make this change.

He added that his brother is "at home in Dublin living in peace and love with his husband of some years, Steven. They are about the healthiest and happiest couple I know. They had to travel a little farther than down the aisle to make their vows, though, to Canada, where their marriage was celebrated ... That’s why this is personal to me. The fact that my brother had to leave Ireland to have his dream of being married become real is insane. INSANE."

The actor pointed out the clear differences between how easy it is to marry if you are straight.

"I can jump into my car now, drive four hours to Vegas from Los Angeles, get drunk and meet a woman and have ‘Elvis’ marry us for $200. And yet in many states in America, if I were gay, I couldn’t marry," he wrote.

Farrell closed by asking those living in Ireland, reading his plea to "sign up and register to vote next year so that each individual’s voice can be heard. ... There are too many things that divide us as a people, let not this be another one."