Actor James Franco has been accused of inappropriate behavior by five women, including students from his acting school.
Four of James Franco’s former students and an actress who said the actor was her mentor told the LA Times they were victims of “an abuse of power”.
The latest accusations come after claims against James Franco on social media following his best actor win at this year’s Golden Globe awards.
James Franco, 39, said the earlier allegations made on Twitter were “not accurate”.
On January 7, James Franco attended the Globes ceremony wearing a Time’s Up pin on his lapel, signaling his support for an initiative aimed at combating harassment in the film industry and other workplaces.
That prompted accusations of inappropriate behavior against him on Twitter from actresses Sarah Tither-Kaplan and Violet Paley.
On January 11, Sarah Tither-Kaplan told LA Times that James Franco participated in an “abuse of power” on film sets designed to create a “culture of exploiting non-celebrity women”.
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James Franco taught a number of acting classes at two film schools opened in 2014, both named Studio 4.
His attorney, Michael Plonsker, told the LA Times that the actor disputes the allegations.
Actress Ally Sheedy was among those to question James Franco’s appearance at the Globes, where he won an award for his role in The Disaster Artist, which details the making of notorious 2003 film The Room.
Ally Sheedy posted a series of cryptic tweets during the ceremony, one of which asked: “Why is James Franco allowed in?”
“James Franco just won,” another of her now deleted posts read.
“Please never ever ask me why I left the film/tv business.”
Rose McGowan, a prominent campaigner against inappropriate behavior in the entertainment industry, said on Twitter that Hollywood had been “selectively deaf” about James Franco.
This year’s ceremony saw several winners address Hollywood’s abuse scandal in their acceptance speeches.
Many attendees opted to wear black to express solidarity with victims of abuse and harassment.
