After James Franco was hit with numerous allegations of sexual misconduct in 2018, his former frequent collaborator Seth Rogen said he had no plans to work with him again, something he recently reaffirmed.
Franco spent much of the early aughts as one of Hollywood’s most in-demand stars, thanks to movies such as Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man trilogy, Pineapple Express, and 127 Hours. However, in 2018, accusations of sexual misconduct emerged against him, resulting in a 2021 lawsuit that was settled out of court. Franco denied all allegations at the time, but later discussed them publicly.
Since the allegations, he has remained largely out of the spotlight, primarily appearing in low-budget independent productions and ending his long-running friendship with Rogen. Now, The Studio star has said he hasn’t spoken to Franco “in a long time” and has “no plans” to work with the actor, who has recently been mounting a comeback on TikTok.
The pair first met while starring in the 1999 teen comedy-drama series Freaks and Geeks and went on to make a number of hit films together, including 2014’s The Interview and 2017’s The Disaster Artist. After Franco admitted to sleeping with students at his acting school, Rogen publicly distanced himself.
@jamesfranco2319 I think I’m being watched.
“I’m trying to think how much I want to personally share about this,” Rogen prefaced when speaking to The New York Times about Franco earlier this week.
“I honestly think the nuance of it is too personal for me to get into right now. It is a very personal thing. There’s the public-facing side of it, which I’ve spoken about, and I have the same stance publicly that I’ve had, and I think the proof is in the pudding – I have not worked with him in years.”
Rogen continued, “But the personal side of it is just so nuanced, and it involves people that I don’t know if I should be dragging into this.
“I don’t know what I would benefit from getting deeply into it. Nothing has changed since the last time I talked about all this, and I haven’t worked with him in a really long time, and I have no plans to.”