James Franco Claims His Oscars Snub Is Nothing To Do With Sexual Misconduct Allegations
Actor James Franco has been snubbed by the Academy, who have not nominated him for an Oscar at this year’s Academy Awards. Franco had been widely tipped for a Best Actor nomination for his role as filmmaker Tommy Wiseau in The Disaster Artist, a movie he also directed. Franco’s absence from the Best Actor nomination list comes shortly after he joined the list of Hollywood figures who stand accused of sexually inappropriate behavior. The allegations against Franco emerged just days before the Oscars voting deadline with multiple women accusing the 39-year-old star of sexual exploitation.
As reported by USA Today, the Academy has not made any comment about Franco’s absence from the Oscar nominations list, by many surmised that the allegations against him played a role in his exclusion. The allegations against Franco emerged in the Los Angeles Times after Franco accepted a Golden Globe Award for his role in The Disaster Artist. During his acceptance speech, Franco wore a “Times Up” pin something one of Franco’s accusers, Sarah Tither-Kaplan, said, “was like a slap in my face.”
The Times Up pin has become a symbol of the initiative devoted to addressing sexual harassment and gender inequality in Hollywood and elsewhere.
According to E-News, Franco is said to be “disappointed” to be snubbed by the Oscars, but “somewhat relieved not to be nominated for The Disaster Artist. They claim that a source has told them that Franco is trying to get through this “rocky patch” and that he is hoping the scandal will “blow over.”
“James [Franco] is disappointed in not getting an Oscar nomination, but also very understanding and somewhat relieved. He doesn’t want it to look like the snub is correlated with the allegations against him.”
“James is trying to get through this rocky patch and hopes everything will blow over appropriately. He is really leaning on his family right now and trying to stay under the radar as much as possible.”
The allegations against Franco center on his behavior towards women attending classes at his Studio 4 acting school. It is claimed that Franco created “sexually exploitive situations for non-celebrity actors.” Franco denies the allegations against him and claims that he is fully supportive of the movement to end sexual exploitation in Hollywood.
Franco is the latest Hollywood celebrity to join the list of those who have been accused of sexual exploitation in the wake of the Harvey Weinstein scandal.
