Standing in line to pick up my (free, thanks OSU!) ticket to the generically-titled A Night with James Franco, held on September 15 in the Ohio Union’s Archie Griffin Grand Ballroom, I was entirely baffled and befuddled as to what the evening would entail. As far as A-list celebrities go, Franco is kind of a chameleon – Pinterest-worthy heartthrob one moment, acclaimed dramatic actor the next. One second he’s a stoner, the next minute US Weekly is telling you he’s at Yale. As far as personas go, he’s gone through as many phases as Miley.
Even the possibility and diversity of discussion topics was overwhelming. What would he speak about? Would he deliver a sociopolitical analysis of his Bound 3 video? An examination of modern male friendship as exemplified by his bond with Seth Rogen? Or simply lecture on Stoners 101?
Clad in a leather jacket, jeans, his knee-shakingly charming grin and a freshly shaven head (Why Franco, why? I mean, you have great bone structure, but no role can possibly be worth the loss of your brunette curls), the actor entered the room to rousing applause. Seated with interviewer and film professor Andy Rose, Franco addressed what I unscientifically surveyed as a 99% female audience. Notably absent was wildly attractive younger brother Dave.
Ninety minutes, two iced chai lattes and a million questions later, I am no closer to uncovering the true personality of the man known as James Edward Franco. While he delivered an abbreviated version of his life story, no unifying theme emerged from his long, and somewhat rambling, talk. As such I have compiled a sampling of anecdotes and quotes from the heartthrob/intellectual’s talk to sum up what James Franco thinks of James Franco.
On His Struggles with Depression
Franco stated that around the time her turned 27 or 28, “All opportunities seemed to be open… and I’m kind of embarrassed to say, but I went through a bit of depression. Even though on the outside, it seemed like my life was great. And my depression was worse cause there wasn’t anyone I could talk about it with.” In attempting to overcome it, he said, “I tried a little bit of religion – even though I didn’t really keep up with that,” and eventually stumbled on the concept that he “could reshape life in a new way by going to school.”
On Bound 3
“Seth wanted to do 30 seconds. I wanted to do the whole thing, shot for shot. I was going to play Kim, but Seth thought he should because his back is hairier,” Franco said. “Kanye wanted us to do again at his wedding live. We all agreed it would get awkward live.”
On Creativity
Early in his talk Franco noted, “When I was only an actor I felt sort of illiterate in terms of creativity,” explaining he felt unable to fully express himself due to his lack of knowledge of other aspects of filmmaking,like writing and directing. “It’s much more rewarding to create something than to just be lazy and get drunk or something.”
On Dave Franco
“I was the oldest, and seemed to go through some trouble. Dave was like the Homecoming King and voted Best Looking in the yearbook and seemed to not have any trouble in his life.” Stating that they had once been roommates, he asserted that, “We’re both cat lovers and he stole my two cats.”
On His Success in Film
“I guess it was a combination of good luck and hard work.”
On His Narcotic Reputation
“Let me preempt this, cause someone will ask in their question if I’ll smoke weed with them after this talk, but I don’t smoke weed.” Later he noted, “People seem to think I’m a stoner,” and stated “I’m really sorry, but I can’t do anything illegal with anyone after this.”
On Education
“I’m a teacher now and it’s made some big changes in my life.” Franco also stated that his biggest influences have been teachers, and that this segment of his career is what he’d most like to be remembered for. He also asserted that his payment for the evening would be directed towards funding for his students.
On Seth Rogen
“Seth is the person I’m closest to from ‘Freaks and Geeks.” When questioned on his physical interaction with Rogen in the Bound 3 video, he asserted, “Oh yeah, I’ve kissed Seth a lot.”
And as per usual, Franco closed the evening with a selfie.