Actor James Franco has confessed to engaging in s**ual relationships with students from his acting school nearly four years after facing allegations of s**ual misconduct.
The 43-year-old star reached a settlement of $2.2 million in July following a lawsuit accusing him of displaying s**ually inappropriate behavior towards female students.
During an interview on The Jess Cagle Podcast, Franco acknowledged that he had been involved romantically with students while teaching and admitted that his actions were unethical.
He emphasized that his intention for starting the school was not to exploit women for s**ual purposes.
Despite the controversy surrounding his personal conduct, Franco is renowned for his roles in acclaimed films such as “127 Hours,” directed by Danny Boyle, as well as appearances in “Pineapple Express” and the Spider-Man franchise.
Maintaining his silence on the accusations against him for several years, Franco expressed the need to listen to those who criticized him.
Former attendees of Franco’s now-closed Studio 4 acting school, Sarah Tither-Kaplan and Toni Gaal, alleged that Franco sought to establish a network of young women who were exploited both personally and professionally under the guise of educational opportunities.
The lawsuit filed in Los Angeles in 2019 accused Franco of leveraging his position to manipulate students with promises of roles in his projects.
The legal action claimed that students were defrauded by paying for acting classes while being subjected to s**ual objectification and intimidation.
Although Franco initially refuted the allegations when they surfaced, settlements were ultimately reached with Tither-Kaplan, Gaal, and other complainants.
In a candid discussion on the podcast, Franco revealed that he has been addressing issues related to s** addiction since 2016 and undergoing significant personal growth.
Reflecting on his past mindset, he admitted that his perception of consent was distorted and attributed this to his struggles with addiction and recovery.
These remarks mark Franco’s first comprehensive public response to the accusations against him, where he grappled with questions about the power dynamics between teachers and students.
Acknowledging his lack of clarity at the time, Franco underscored his ongoing journey of self-examination and transformation fueled by his experiences in recovery.
