FOLK music star Finbar Furey is targeting Hollywood after revealing that he is involved in talks to star as Ben Affleck’s dad in a new big budget movie.
The 67-year-old front man of The Fureys auditioned for the role of Affleck’s father Thomas Coughlin – a high-ranking Boston Irish police officer – in the film Live By Night.
"I just did a reading for a Ben Affleck film that they're bringing out," Finbar told the Ryan Tubridy Show on 2fm.
"I think they are going to start filming next year.
"I play his father who is a very clean cop and has never dirtied his hands.
"His son [Affleck] is a mafia boss, so he's disgusted with him," he added.
He auditioned for the role of Coughlin while filming last Friday’s performance for RTE music series The Hit.
"I did it in the middle of The Hit; I was trying to work out the song and Ben Affleck was in my head," he said.
Oscar-winning Affleck was recently announced to star in the next Batman film, but he will also direct Live By Night.
The film is Affleck’s adaptation of the novel by Dennis Lehane, who also wrote Gone Baby Gone.
Furey enjoyed success as lead singer of The Fureys over a thirty year period, and the band had best selling records including When You Were Sweet Sixteen, Green Fields of France and The Lonesome Boatman.
The Dublin born musician’s acted in popular RTE drama Love/Hate, in which he played gangster John-Boy’s dad.
Of his role in the series and starring alongside Tom Vaughan-Lawlor and Robert Sheehan, Furey said: "They were so fast. I remember going for the reading and was sitting around the table with these gifted kids.
"I was so nervous. I wasn't going to go in. I sat in the car and said ‘do I need this?', but I went in and had a great time."
He also enjoyed being part of a tremendous cast in Martin Scorsese’s Hollywood movie Gangs of New York, including Daniel Day-Lewis and Leonardo DiCaprio.
Live By Night is due out next year.
