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Colbert Presses Franco — to a Point
At the end of a good-natured interview on “The Late Show” on Tuesday, Stephen Colbert asked James Franco to address the elephant in the room: allegations of sexual improprieties that had surfaced since Sunday.
During Mr. Franco’s appearance at the Golden Globes, where he won for his lead role in “The Disaster Artist,” multiple women suggested on social media that he should not have been wearing a “Time’s Up” pin in solidarity with victims of gender inequality. The actress Ally Sheedy tweeted that he was an example of “why I left the film/tv business,” though she later removed the message.
When Mr. Colbert asked for a response, Mr. Franco focused on the broader movement for gender equality, then denied any suggestion that he had acted improperly.
“First of all, I have no idea what I did to Ally Sheedy,” he said. “I directed her in a play Off Broadway, I had nothing but a great time with her, total respect for her. I have no idea why she was upset.”
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He added, “The things that I heard that were on Twitter are not accurate, but I completely support people coming out and being able to have a voice.”
James Franco was riding high on Sunday night, scoring a Golden Globe for his acclaimed turn in "The Disaster Artist," a behind-the-scenes comedy he also directed. It was a career peak for Franco, who took to the stage at the Beverly Hilton wearing a pin honoring the fight against sexual misconduct.
But not everyone was celebrating.
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Ally Sheedy, co-star of "The Breakfast Club," fired off a series of cryptic tweets that evening — since deleted — in which she appeared to take aim at Franco, who stars in "The Disaster Artist" as eccentric cult-movie hero Tommy Wiseau.
"James Franco just won," Sheedy tweeted, per screenshots taken by several media outlets. "Please never ever ask me why I left the film/tv business." (Franco directed Sheedy in a 2014 off-Broadway production of "The Long Shrift.")
Related: The deafening silence on harassment among men at the Golden Globes
It was not clear exactly what Sheedy meant in her posts. But they nonetheless went viral, inspiring days of social media chatter and reviving rumors of alleged sexual misconduct and inappropriate behavior.
Amid the furor, The New York Times canceled an event at which Franco and his younger brother, Dave, were slated to promote "The Disaster Artist." And the accusations could jeopardize the elder Franco's path to an Oscar nomination. (He was previously nominated for his performance in "127 Hours.")
Hey James Franco, nice #timesup pin at the #GoldenGlobes , remember a few weeks ago when you told me the full nudity you had me do in two of your movies for $100/day wasn't exploitative because I signed a contract to do it? Times up on that! — Sarah Tither-Kaplan🌈 (@sarahtk) January 8, 2018
Cute #TIMESUP pin James Franco. Remember the time you pushed my head down in a car towards your exposed penis & that other time you told my friend to come to your hotel when she was 17? After you had already been caught doing that to a different 17 year old? — Violet Paley (@VioletPaley) January 8, 2018
Sarah Tither-Kaplan, a filmmaker and actress, claimed in a tweet that Franco told her the "full nudity" he purportedly asked her to do for two of his movies was not exploitative because she had signed a contract.
Violet Paley, another actress, alleged in a tweet that Franco once pushed her head toward his "exposed penis." In a subsequent tweet, Paley claimed Franco offered her and "a few other girls" an apology — which Paley said she does not accept.
Franco, 39, denied accusations of sexual impropriety in an awkward appearance Tuesday evening on "The Late Show" on CBS.
Related: James Franco awkwardly addresses claims on Colbert’s ‘Late Show’
"The things that I heard that were on Twitter are not accurate, but I completely support people coming out and being able to have a voice," Franco told host Stephen Colbert.
James Franco accepting a Golden Globe "The Disaster Artist" on Jan. 7, 2018. Paul Drinkwater / NBC via Reuters
The renewed scrutiny on Franco after the Globes comes four years after he apparently sent a series of text messages, posted on the image-sharing website Imgur, in which he seemed to try to seduce a 17-year-old Scottish girl he had recently met outside a Broadway theater in New York.
In an April 2014 appearance on "Live! With Kelly and Michael," Franco acknowledged the text message exchange:
"I'm embarrassed, and I guess I'm just a model of how social media is tricky," he said at the time. "It's a way people meet each other today, but what I've learned — I guess because I'm new to it — is you don't know who's on the other end. I used bad judgement, and I learned my lesson."
Later that month, in a radio interview with Howard Stern, Franco again addressed the episode, noting that the age of consent in New York is 17.
"They make it out like I'm pursuing young women," Franco told Stern. "I'm not going to high schools looking for dates."
In the same interview, Stern said some people thought the incident was "promotion" for "Palo Alto," a 2014 independent film in which Franco plays a high school soccer teacher who has sex with a student, played by Emma Roberts. (The film was adapted from a short story collection written by Franco.)
In his interview with Colbert on Tuesday night, Franco vowed to make amends for his alleged conduct. "If there's restitution to be made, I will make it," Franco said. "I'm here to listen and learn and change my perspective where it's off."
Actor says claims made against him by two women are ‘not accurate’ after being quizzed by Late Show host
James Franco has described sexual misconduct allegations made against him as “not accurate”, when quizzed on the subject on Tuesday’s episode of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.
The actor, who on Monday received a Golden Globe for his performance in comedy biopic The Disaster Artist, responded to claims made by two women on Twitter in the wake of his victory. Actor-director Sarah Tither-Kaplan alleges that Franco exploited her by asking her to perform nude in two of his films for $100 per day, while actor Violet Paley alleges that Franco tried to force her to perform oral sex on him while in a car.
In a later tweet Paley claimed that Franco had apologised to her and several other women over the phone several weeks before the allegations came to light.
Violet Paley (@VioletPaley) A couple weeks ago, James offered me & a few other girls an overdue, annoyed, convenient phone “apology”. I don’t accept, but maybe some other people’s lives would be made easier if he donated all of his earnings from “The Disaster Artist” to @RAINN01.
Colbert addressed the claims during Tuesday’s episode of The Late Show, noting that Franco had received criticism online for wearing a badge supporting the Time’s Up movement and asking whether he wanted to respond to allegations made against him.
“The things that I heard that were on Twitter are not accurate, but I completely support people coming out and being able to have a voice because they didn’t have a voice for so long,” Franco told Colbert, adding that he didn’t “want to, you know, shut them down in any way. It’s, I think, a good thing and I support it.”
“The way I live my life, I can’t live if there’s restitution to be made. I will make it. So if I’ve done something wrong, I will fix it. I have to. I mean, I think that’s how that works. I don’t know what else to do,” he added.
In the interview with Colbert, Franco also addressed a series of tweets by Breakfast Club star Ally Sheedy, who he had directed in 2014 in the off-Broadway play The Long Shrift. “James Franco just won. Please never ever ask me why I left the film/tv business,” Sheedy wrote, later adding a second tweet which read: “Why is a man hosting? Why is James Franco allowed in? Said too much. Nite love ya #goldenglobes.” Sheedy has since deleted the tweets. However, screenshots have been widely circulated online.
“I have no idea what I did to Ally Sheedy,” Franco said. “I directed her in a play off-Broadway. I had nothing but a great time with her and I have total respect for her. I have no idea why she was upset.”
Earlier on Tuesday the New York Times cancelled an event scheduled for Wednesday with Franco and his brother Dave in the wake of the allegations. “The event was intended to be a discussion of the making of the film, The Disaster Artist. Given the controversy surrounding recent allegations, we’re no longer comfortable proceeding in that vein,” the Times said in a statement.
The Guardian has contacted a representative for Sheedy for clarification on the comments made against Franco.
James Franco said that recent allegations of sexual misconduct leveled against him are “not accurate.”
“I haven’t read [the accusations.] I’ve heard about them,” Franco said Tuesday night during an appearance on “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.” “The things that I heard that were on Twitter are not accurate but I completely support people coming out and being able to have a voice because they didn’t have a voice for so long. So I don’t want to ... shut them down in any way.”
Multiple women, including actress Violet Paley, accused Franco of sexual misconduct after he on Sunday won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Motion Picture/Comedy for his role in “The Disaster Artist.” The actor was also criticized for wearing a “Time’s Up” pin in support of an initiative against gender discrimination despite the allegations.
Cute #TIMESUP pin James Franco. Remember the time you pushed my head down in a car towards your exposed penis & that other time you told my friend to come to your hotel when she was 17? After you had already been caught doing that to a different 17 year old? — Violet Paley (@VioletPaley) January 8, 2018
On Colbert’s show, Franco did not respond to Paley’s tweet specifically but did respond to comments from “The Breakfast Club” star Ally Sheedy. Soon after Franco accepted his Golden Globe, Sheedy tweeted, “James Franco just won. Please never ever ask me why I left the film/tv business.” She deleted the tweets soon after, along with one calling out actor Christian Slater with the hashtag #metoo.
“I have no idea what I did to Ally Sheedy,” Franco said. “I directed her in a play Off Broadway. I had nothing but a great time with her, total respect for her. I have no idea why she was upset.”
The actor went on to say that he prides himself on taking responsibility for his actions.
A couple weeks ago, James offered me & a few other girls an overdue, annoyed, convenient phone “apology”. I don’t accept, but maybe some other people’s lives would be made easier if he donated all of his earnings from “The Disaster Artist” to @RAINN01. — Violet Paley (@VioletPaley) January 9, 2018
Earlier on Tuesday, the New York Times canceled an event it had scheduled with Franco over the claims against Franco.
In a statement to the Hollywood Reporter, a spokesperson for the Times said, “The event was intended to be a discussion of the making of the film, “The Disaster Artist.” Given the controversy surrounding recent allegations, we’re no longer comfortable proceeding in that vein.”
