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James Franco On Making Bad Movies And Kissing Sean Penn
James Franco is on the September 2008 cover of GQ Magazine to promote his latest film, "Pineapple Express." Here's some of what the 30-year-old actor, also know for "Spider-Man," had to say:
On not getting along with the cast of Freaks & Geeks: "I'll admit I was not a team player. A lot of it, I think, just had to do with being obnoxious when the camera was on someone else. Maybe I'd eat a banana in the background that would take focus away from other actors. I didn't think about it that way, but now I could say, 'Look, the scene's not about me, it's about them, just chill out, James. Don't eat a f---ing banana.' "
On kissing costar Sean Penn in the movie Milk: "The first kiss of the movie was out on Haight Street, with, like, 200 people watching, outside. I'm sure in the end it will be a really cool shot, but it starts close and then it takes maybe a minute. That's a long time on film with everybody watching, and, like, a fake moustache getting in your mouth. It was long enough that you couldn't help but thinking, 'Oh, my God, I'm kissing Spicoli.'"
On making a few bad films: "I wanted to be the best actor that I could be. It's just sad for me, because I know I worked so hard, and I just feel like in some way I kind of blew it. It's just hard to get away from what I see as the stain of these bad movies."
Franco recalls the moment in time when he had three big movies finished but yet to be released: Flyboys, Tristan & Isolde, and Annapolis. "And I thought, 'Yeah! I got these three movies!' And then I saw them all." It wasn't just the time and sweat he had wasted on-set. For Flyboys, a story of American World War I flying aces, he earned his pilot's license. For Annapolis, a tale of Naval Academy conflict, he did eight months of boxing training. And for Tristan & Isolde, a mythological tale of Anglo-Irish war, romance, and tragedy, "I did fucking sword fighting for eight months. What am I ever going to use that for? And horseback riding." In the script, there was a battle scene on horseback, so Franco learned all these complicated horseback tricks. "Then we got to Prague, or Ireland, and they say, 'Oh yeah, that scene's been cut.' "
To read the full article, visit GQ.com.
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GQ | August 12, 2008 02:18 PM