James Franco said he has changed after sexual assault allegations halted his Hollywood career.
The actor, 46, who was dumped by boyfriend Seth Rogan after being sued by five young women in 2019 accusing him of abusing his power as a teacher and mentor, said the scandal made him reconsider his priorities.
“Being told you’re bad is painful,” he said Variety in an extensive interview published Friday.
“But in the end, that’s exactly what I needed to just stop the way I was going.”
The Oscar nominee settled the lawsuit in 2021, paying $2.235 million to the women.
James Franco, 46, said he has changed after sexual assault allegations against him in 2019 (pictured in Rome, October 25)
After being shunned by Hollywood and then going through the Covid-19 lockdown, the Karantina star said he was putting his free time to good use.
“Whatever was going on with me, I had to change my whole way of life.” he argued.
‘So I’m proud of the kind of work I did during that time. And yes, I didn’t work in films, but I certainly did a lot of work to change who I was.”
“Until, say, the last eight years [before the hiatus] I’ve had a good career,” he told the publication. ‘But it was very difficult for me to enjoy it.
‘I was a workaholic; I went all the time. And even if there were good moments – like a movie that people liked or, I don’t know, [being] nominated for an award or whatever it may be, whatever good moments there were that I wish I could have appreciated – I just didn’t because I had something so weird, it was just, I always need more.”
“At the end of the day, I think I’m kind of grateful because it gave me the opportunity to just do my private work and really change what I needed to change,” he said.
‘I don’t want it to sound like platitudes, but honestly this is my experience. Sometimes life hands you things, and the delivery system is so painful. It really hurts,” the 127 Hours star admitted.
“But ultimately, given the big picture I’m talking about, this might be for the best. Who am I to say that?’
“Being told you’re bad is painful,” Franco told Variety. ‘But in the end that was exactly what I needed to just stop the way I was going’; (Pictured in Milan in January)
The actor said that the scandal allowed him to work on himself. ‘I had to change my whole way of life. So I’m proud of the kind of work I did during that time. And yes, I didn’t work in films, but I certainly did a lot of work to change who I was’ (Pictured in 2022)
He was sued in 2019 by five young women, who accused him of abusing his power as a teacher and mentor. He settled the lawsuit in 2021; In the photo October 25
Franco has worked in Europe in the meantime. His latest film, Hey Joe, premiered at the Rome Film Festival on October 25.
He stars as the title character, an alcoholic World War II soldier who returns to Italy to find the son he fathered there before heading home to his native New Jersey.
The actor also starred in The Price of Money: A Largo Winch Adventure, which was released in France but not in the US.
Franco concentrated on other projects, such as drawing and painting. He has also launched a streetwear fashion line with his friend Kyle Lindgren.
