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The Penguin star Colin Farrell gambles his life away in the first trailer for Netflix's Ballad of a Small Player

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By Mireia Mullor published 19 August 2025

The film is set to hit cinemas and Netflix in October

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Ballad of a Small Player | Official Teaser | Netflix - YouTube Ballad of a Small Player | Official Teaser | Netflix - YouTube
Watch On

Netflix has released the first trailer for Ballad of a Small Player, which shows The Penguin star Colin Farrell gambling his life away in Macau's casino paradise.

In the first official footage, which you can see in the video above, we see the DC star making some questionable choices at poker tables and in luxury hotel rooms. The huge gambling scene in the Chinese region serves as the landscape for the story, and offers the protagonist an opportunity to change his fortune. Quite literally.

"I may be out of puff, but I still have my balls," Farrell's character says in the teaser.

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Edward Berger's new film, set to release in autumn, adapts Lawrence Osborne’s 2014 novel of the same name. Given Berger's latest works, the Oscar-winning films All Quiet on the Western Front and Conclave, this new Netflix original has become one of the most anticipated movies of the year.

The logline reads: "When his past and his debts start to catch up with him, a high-stakes gambler laying low in Macau encounters a kindred spirit who might just hold the key to his salvation."

The cast for the movie includes Fala Chen, Deanie Ip, Alex Jennings and Tilda Swinton.

Before Ballad of a Small Player hits screens, we'll get to see Colin Farrell on the big screen alongside Barbie star Margot Robbie in the upcoming A Big Bold Beautiful Journey, which is set to be released on September 19. It follows two strangers in "a funny, fantastical, sweeping adventure together where they get to relive important moments from their respective pasts."

DC fans are also hoping to see the Irish actor reprising his role as The Penguin in The Batman 2, which is finally filming next year, while a season 2 for the HBO Max show is yet to be confirmed.

Ballad of a Small Player is releasing in select cinemas on October 17, with the Netflix streaming release set for October 29. For more, check out our guides on the best Netflix movies, and all upcoming movies in 2025 and beyond.

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Contributing Writer

Mireia is a UK-based culture journalist and critic. She previously worked as Deputy Movies Editor at Digital Spy, and her work as a freelance writer has appeared in WeLoveCinema and Spanish magazines Fotogramas, Esquire, and Elle. She is also a published author, having written a book about Studio Ghibli's 'Kiki's Delivery Service' in 2023. Talking about anime and musicals is the best way to grab her attention.

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