We have compiled the details of James Franco, a philanthropist actor who was born into an artist family and who has come to the forefront with his acting career and directing as well as his successful writing.
His full name is James Edward Franco, he was born on April 19, 1978 in Palo Alto, California. His mother is Betsy Lou Verne, a Russian-Jewish children's book author and actress, and his father is Douglas Eugene Franco, a Portuguese-Swedish businessman. Franco has two younger brothers, actors Tom Andrew Franco and Dave John Franco, and they grew up together in California. While Franco interned at Lockheed Martin Corporation, he was often encouraged by his father to get good grades. Graduating from Palo Alto High School in 1996, Franco acted there, leading him to join CSSSA in 1998 for his theatrical studies. While in high school, Franco was arrested for various crimes and prohibitions, and these arrests placed Franco under state surveillance for a short time. Later, he was given a second chance by the judge.
Franco always wanted to be an actor but did not dare because he was afraid of rejection. Enrolling as an English major at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Franco dropped out after his freshman year to pursue a career as an actor. He then began taking acting lessons from Robert Carnegie at Playhouse West. Because his family was uncomfortable with this choice, he started a late night job at McDonald's to support himself. He was vegetarian the year before he started working.
After 15 months of training, Franco began auditioning in Los Angeles and landed his first paid role in a television commercial for "Pizza Hut." He made his debut in 1999, after starring in the NBC teen comedy-drama television series "Freaks and Geeks." The series, which was short-lived due to low viewership, later became a cult among the audience. After his first movie, the romantic comedy "Never Been Kissed"(1999), he played the character of popular athlete Chris in the teen comedy "What It Takes"(2000), a modern adaptation of a play.
He later appeared in the lead role in the TV biographical drama film "James Dean" (2001), directed by Mark Rydell. He started smoking cigarettes and dyed his hair blonde for his role, and learned to ride a motorcycle, play the guitar and bongo. He earned a Golden Globe Award and Emmy Award and Screen Actors Guild Award (SAG) nomination for his performance. The following year, he garnered worldwide recognition and attention by portraying Harry Osborn, son of the evil Green Goblin, in the superhero movie "Spider-Man." The film was a commercial and critical success, grossing $822 million worldwide.
Later, the crime drama movie "Sonny" (2002), directed by Nicolas Cage, also told the story of the protagonist who returns home after having just been discharged from the army and starring Franco. The film was lauded by critics, describing it as an "immediate nominee for worst movie of the year". That same year, Franco starred in the crime drama film "City by the Sea"(2002) as a homeless drug addict, with Robert De Niro and Frances McDormand. He also appeared with Neve Campbell in the ballet drama film "The Company" (2003), directed by Robert Altman.
The following year, he reprized his role in the sequel "Spider-Man 2" (2004). The critically-received film broke the weekend box office record for North America and grossed $783 million worldwide. Thus, it became the second highest-grossing film of 2004. He later produced and starred in the black comedy movie "The Ape" (2005) and the war movie "The Great Raid" (2005). In the second, he played Robert Prince, a captain in the United States Army's elite Sixth Ranger Battalion.
In 2006, Franco starred in the drama film "Annapolis" with Tyrese Gibson. For the role, he took boxing training for eight months. He then played the legendary hero Tristan with Sophia Myles in the movie "Tristan & Isolde", a period drama adaptation of the story of the same name. For his role, he did horseback riding and sword fighting. He then completed his Private Pilot License training to prepare for his role in the war drama movie "Flyboys", which was released in September 2006.
Dissatisfied with the course of his career, Franco re-enrolled at UCLA in the fall of 2006 as the English division. He earned his Bachelor's degree in June 2008 with a 3.5 out of 4.0 average. Franco completed his department honors thesis for his diploma as a novel under the supervision of writer Mona Simpson.
The following year, he played the role of Harry Osborn again in the sequel "Spider-Man 3" (2007). Unlike previous films, the third film received mixed reviews from critics. Despite this, it was the most successful film in the series, grossing a total of $891 million worldwide. In addition, it also managed to become Franco's highest-grossing film to date. Franco then co-starred with Sienna Miller in the romantic comedy "Camille" (2007), a dark fantasy drama about a young newlywed couple. Other 2007 projects included the drama film "Good Time Max", which Franco wrote, directed and starred in.
He later got the lead role in the action comedy movie "Pineapple Express" (2008), in which he co-starred with Seth Rogen and directed by David Gordon Green. The film, which was successful at the box office, was received generally positively from critics. He earned a Golden Globe Award nomination for Best Actor in a Musical or Comedy for his performance. Additionally, he was crowned "Stoner of the Year" by High Times magazine for his performance.
Franco appeared in the Gus Van Sant biopic "Milk" (2008), alongside Sean Penn, Josh Brolin and Emile Hirsch, as Scott Smith, Harvey Milk's boyfriend. He won the Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance. He started 2010 by appearing with Jane Krakowski in the TV series "30 Rock" and playing himself. In the same year, he achieved commercial success by appearing in the biographical romantic drama film "Eat Pray Love", based on the book of the same name and directed by Ryan Murphy. In the following months, he played the leading role as poet Allen Ginsberg in the drama film "Howl". The film, which premiered at the Berlin Film Festival, received modest reviews.
He starred in his next project, "127 Hours" (2010), directed by Danny Boyle, playing real-life mountaineer Aron Ralston. The film focused on Ralston trying to save his hand while canyoning alone in Utah by getting stuck under a rock in a mountain pass and trying many different ways to survive. To date, the film has been one of his most critically acclaimed films and was also a commercial success. His performance earned universal acclaim from critics and was nominated for an Academy Award, Golden Globe Award, and SAG Award, as well as an Independent Spirit Award.
In 2011, Franco took one of the lead roles in the medieval fantasy comedy film "Your Highness," playing Fabious, a prince, alongside Natalie Portman, Zooey Deschanel, and Danny McBride. In May 2010, he appeared as Dr. William 'Will' Rodman in the science fiction film "Rise of the Planet of the Apes"(2011), a reboot of the 'Planet of the Apes' franchise directed by Rupert Wyatt. Released on August 5, the film received critical acclaim and was a success, grossing over $481 million against its production budget.
The following year, Franco co-starred with Winona Ryder in the psychological thriller "The Letter" (2012), directed by Jay Anania. The following month, he appeared as a drug-addicted lawyer in Stephen Elliott's directorial debut, the drama film "About Cherry," which began filming in California, alongside Ashley Hinshaw, Dev Patel, and Heather Graham. Later, he appeared in the barsch with Mila Kunis, Rachel Weisz and Michelle Williams in the fantasy adventure movie "Oz the Great and Powerful"(2013), based on a novel and directed by Sam Raimi. The movie, which was released on March 8, 2013, received mixed reviews. Despite this, it became the 13th highest-grossing film of 2013.
At the end of September 2010, he bought the rights to Stephen Elliott's film "The Adderall Diaries" to adapt, direct and star in the film. Franco also directed the film version of William Faulkner's gothic novel "As I Lay Dying", and the film screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival to mixed reviews. In late 2013, he appeared as a fictionalized version of himself in the apocalyptic black comedy "This Is the End" alongside Seth Rogen, Jay Baruchel, Craig Robinson, Jonah Hill and Danny McBride. The film was successful both critically and commercially.
In February 2012, he appeared with Scott Haze and Tim Blake Nelson in the crime drama film "Child of God" based on the novel of the same name and co-written and directed by Franco. The film became the official selection of the 2013 Toronto International Film Festival. In 2013, Franco appeared as gangster "Alien" in the comedy crime film "Spring Breakers" directed by Harmony Korine with Vanessa Hudgens, Selena Gomez, Ashley Benson, Gucci Mane and Rachel Korine. It deserved to be a success for its small budget and has become a cult following, garnering critical acclaim.
In December 2014, Franco took the lead role with Seth Rogen in the Sony action-comedy thriller "The Interview". Later, his two projects, the biographical drama film "I Am Michael" (2015) and the mystery drama film "True Story" (2015), were screened at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival. In the first, he played the role of a gay activist who denies his homosexuality and is a conservative Christian pastor with a girlfriend. The latter played the role of Christian Longo, based on a true story, who is on the FBI's most wanted list for murdering his wife and three children and is hiding under the guise of journalist Michael Finkel.
In 2015, Franco was featured in the limited Hulu sci-fi thriller miniseries "11.22.63" based on the novel of the same name. The eight-episode series, which premiered on February 15, 2016, received generally positive reviews. In 2016, he co-produced and starred in the biopic "King Cobra," a true story about the rise of gay pornographic actor Brent Corrigan and the murder of Bryan Kocis, as Joseph Kerekes, who was convicted of murder. "Why Him?" was released in December that same year. He starred with Zoey Deutch and Bryan Cranston in the friendly comedy movie. He then starred as Jacob Branson in the sci-fi action horror movie "Alien: Covenant", a sequel directed by Ridley Scott, alongside Danny McBride, Michael Fassbender, and Katherine Waterston. Released on May 19, 2017, the film received generally positive reviews from critics and was successful at the box office.
In 2016, Franco directed, co-produced and starred in the biographical comedy-drama film "The Disaster Artist", a film adaptation of the nonfiction book of the same name. Franco plays Tommy Wiseau, the movie's star, director, screenwriter and producer; Dave Franco and Seth Rogen also starred. The film garnered positive reviews on December 1, 2017, and received almost universal praise for its performance. Additionally, he won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Musical or Comedy Film.
At the end of 2017, Franco said he had slowed down to focus on himself. In August 2022, Franco appeared in the role of Fidel Castro in the movie "Alina in Cuba", in a casting decision supported by Fidel Castro's daughter.
Private life
After meeting him on a set in 1999, he had an affair with co-star Marla Sokoloff for five years. Then, he was romantically involved with actress Ahna O'Reilly until 2011. In an interview, Franco confirmed their separation.
Franco, who identifies as Jewish, added that he grew up with a secular upbringing. Franco's sexuality has been the subject of controversy, as he supports the LGBT community and portrays gay characters in his projects. Seen as a sex symbol, Franco was named "Sexiest Man Alive" in 2009 by the news and opinion website Salon. In April 2012, Shalom Life ranked Franco second on their list of 50 talented and attractive Jewish men. The following year, Franco got all the attention in the men's magazine Man of the World, when he was featured as the cover model.
Franco studied at Columbia University's School of the Arts for writing, New York University's Tisch School of the Arts for filmmaking, and Brooklyn College for fiction writing. As of 2010, he was studying at Yale University in the PhD program in English. In 2010, he presented his first solo exhibition "The Dangerous Book Four Boys" at The Clocktower Gallery. That same year, he published a compilation of Franco's short stories called "Palo Alto" and received mixed reviews. In 2012, Franco confirmed that his band had released Daddy's first song, "Love in the Old Days", and their first EP, "MotorCity".
On March 8, 2013, Franco managed to get a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The following year, Franco directed and appeared in the "Techno Color Sunglasses" advertisement promoting the Gucci brand's eyewear collection. Later, he was chosen as the face of the men's perfume line of the same brand. Franco is involved in campaigns, charitable funds and donations of non-profit organizations and organizations. He also worked voluntarily in institutions, organizations and associations that help children with serious health problems. For this work, he was honored with the Spirit of Elysium award.