James Franco Makes Rare Public Appearance at Cannes Party

After six years in the shadows, James Franco is stepping out once again. The Pineapple Express star attended a party at Cannes, marking one of Franco’s only public appearances since 2018, when he was accused of behaving inappropriately toward students at his now defunct film school.

In the wake of the #MeToo movement, five women, including multiple students at Franco’s film school, Studio 4, accused the Disaster Artist star of sexual misconduct. More than a year later, on October 3, 2019, two Studio 4 students filed a lawsuit against Franco and his partners alleging that Franco’s film school exploited them and that the program was a scheme to provide him and his male collaborators with young female performers who they could take advantage of.

The suit, filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court, accused Franco and his male collaborators of creating “an environment of harassment and sexual exploitation both in and out of the class.” The suit also claimed that Franco and his partners “engaged in widespread inappropriate and sexually charged behavior towards female students” and abused their power as teachers “by dangling the opportunity for roles in their projects.” One student described performing in an orgy scene with Franco, during which she said Franco allegedly removed actresses’ vaginal guards while simulating oral sex on them.

At the time, a lawyer for Franco, Michael Plonsker, said that “James will not only fully defend himself, but will also seek damages from the plaintiffs and their attorneys for filing this scurrilous publicity-seeking lawsuit.” By February 11, 2021, the lawsuit had reached a settlement, and Franco later agreed to pay more than $2.2 million in damages that June. Later that year, Franco admitted to having sexual relationships with his film school students in an interview on the podcast The Jess Cagle Show. “Over the course of my teaching, I did sleep with students, and that was wrong,” he said.

Since the allegations, the once prolific actor has stayed largely in the shadows. According to his IMDB page, Franco hasn’t appeared in a project since he voiced a character in the animated film Arctic Dogs in 2019, though he has several upcoming projects including Alina of Cuba, a biopic of Fidel Castro’s daughter. According to the Daily Mail, Franco attended the exclusive Nespresso party at Cannes 2024, and spent the evening in the heavily guarded VIP section. The actor is in Cannes with hopes to sell his new film, The Razor’s Edge, on the buyers market. Directed by Demian Lichtenstein and costarring Tommy Lee Jones, The Razor’s Edge is expected to begin filming in June.

Following the party, Armani released a press release of the stars it had dressed for Cannes. The list initially included Franco, as well as actors Raymond Lam, Giancarlo Esposito, and Shia LaBeouf, who also faces misconduct and abuse allegations. Shortly after the first press release went out, Armani issued an amended press release that omitted Franco. Vanity Fair reached out to Armani for comment.

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