James Franco Says He Would Take Tommy Wiseau To The Oscars
Watchers of the Golden Globe red carpet Sunday night may have noted James Franco didn’t take his Disaster Artist muse — director of The Room, Tommy Wiseau — to the awards ceremony. Instead, he was side-by-side with his co-star and brother, Dave Franco. Dave’s wife, Alison Brie, herself a Golden Globe nominee, attended separately with her own sibling.
But if the Francos make it to the Oscars in March, they may bring a special guest — Wiseau, whose ambition and drive led to the production and distribution of what many say is the worst film ever made. As Deadline reported back in November, Wiseau spent $6 million of his own money to produce and star in a film made based on his own script. Wiseau not only paid to produce and distribute the movie, but ponied up the cash to keep it in theatrical release for two weeks to ensure it qualified for Oscar consideration.
The Room was never nominated for an Oscar. But James Franco told GQ that if The Disaster Artist was nominated for any awards, they would be obligated to bring Wiseau to the ceremony. After the Golden Globe nominations were announced last month, Franco told the Los Angeles Times that he wanted to make Wiseau part of the hoopla.
“[T]he fact that this movie about his life is getting all this recognition is just amazing. I am going to include him in as much of it as I can.”
Back in 2003, the film failed to find an audience. The audience only came later, after it developed a reputation as a famously “bad” film with a devoted cult following. The Disaster Artist is based on a book written by Greg Sestero, Wiseau’s co-star and friend, about the journey to getting the film made.
As much as Franco continues to be a supporter and advocate for Wiseau’s passion for filmmaking, he admits there have been rough patches in the relationship between the two. Franco decided to make a movie out of The Disaster Artist, but had to get the rights to the life stories of both Sestero and Wiseau, according to Deadline. Wiseau wanted to not only appear in The Disaster Artist but wanted Johnny Depp to play him. Sestero eventually suggested casting James Franco in the starring role, which the actor believes Wiseau accepted because Franco once played James Dean.
At the Golden Globe awards, The Disaster Artist is nominated for Best Picture — Musical or Comedy and Franco has a nomination for Best Actor. Wiseau won’t be making a speech this time, but may be on hand in the future.
