Now, we all know that I’ve been tracking the gayness of James Franco for what feels like ever and ever. I even thought he was going to be the big celebrity coming out. (Sure, it turned out to be Chely Wright, but, still, I had some great arguments.)
But, now, in a new interview James Franco, while saying he would be happy to play 100 gay roles, is also finally speaking out about his sexuality, which, you’ll recall his publicist recently stopped him from doing during a Q&A following a screening of his documentary Saturday Night. And, much to my surprise, in this new interview Franco says he’s not gay. But you know what? His proclamation sounds a whole lot like what the meaning of “is” is.
Sure, I might be pressing just a bit here, but let’s take a look at this sentence for a moment, since Franco is a writer and, apparently, doesn’t seem to mind playing all kinds of fun games. Speaking about the possibility that he might be typecast after having played so many gay characters, the actor told the Independent that “the worst downside, and I don’t consider this a downside, the worst thing that anybody could say is that I was gay and if somebody said that I guess they would be wrong, but I also wouldn’t care and as far as being typecast, that’s not the case, nonetheless I would be happy to play 100 gay roles as long as they were always good parts.”
Let’s play some linguistics here. Franco says that “the worst thing that anybody could say is that I was gay and if somebody said that I guess they would be wrong.” Was gay. Not am gay. If Franco is gay, and someone said Franco was gay, well, then, technically, that person would be wrong. But let’s just say that Franco isn’t “is-ing” us. Let’s just say that. His words still leave room for the idea that he’s bisexual. If Franco is bisexual, and someone said he was gay, then I guess they’d be wrong.
Frankly, Franco’s playing with our sexuality as an art medium is getting tiresome. Whether he’s being dodgy because he doesn’t want to come out, or if he’s playing dodgy because it’s an artistic challenge for him, he needs to stop. We know that he gets that sexuality is too important to neglect, and that means that it’s also too important to exploit.
He has been dating actress Anha O’Reilly for several years, apparently.
why is his artistic exploration of sexuality getting tiresome? is it because you are too antsy to find out what his own sexuality it? sure it may be fun to speculate, however it really isnt any of your business.
i disagree with your statement that he is exploiting it. it isnt like he is making boatloads of money off of it. he is a grad student for petes sake; they are supposed to pick a subject and run with it.
regardless of his celebrity status or sexuality, i am rather proud that someone would take on our culture as a medium for artistic expression and study. after all, the more it is exposed the more it is tolerated and the closer we can get to civil freedom.
I don’t know that I see it as exploitation either.
If he is straight (all personal fantasies aside it seems reasonable to say he is) then isn’t he doing exactly what we want done? Isn’t he exploring and shining a light on male sexuality in a way that society seems to deny could exist?
It’s been discussed on here before about how the world views two women together differently than it views two men together. I got to thinking about that again last night when it came up on the show Lie To Me when a character was discussing her own sexual experimentation and asked “Why is it ok for women and not men?”
We talk about how it isn’t fair that the world embraces female sexuality to the point of blurring the lines but then when a heterosexual male challenges the status quo on male sexuality, when he explores the concept of male-on-male sexuality, we assume he must be gay or that he’s exploiting us for his own purposes.
Art is supposed to encourage thought right? We assume that the image of two men together is gay, that it can only be appreciated by gay men. But if the person who created the image isn’t gay, if he still appreciates the beauty in it for what it is, then don’t we have to question our assumptions?
I don’t think he’s being dodgy. He says he’s not gay, let that be the end of it. Now ask hm if he’s bisexual…
All the comment above are very wise and well-thought out. I’m in agreement.
To the writer of this post:
Go and get some help. Seriously. No joke. You have some major issues.
The level of obsession on display here (particularly in praragraph 4) is bordering on being stalker-y (notice I said “is,” not “was,” so don’t try to play psycho linguistic games again).
James Franco is not gay, and if he was he still wouldn’t be into you. Let it go.
To the writer of this comment:
Learn to read and think critically.
The level of “obsession” is nothing more than a response to what James Franco has said and done regarding the LGBT community. As a writer, Franco is very much aware of the language games that can be played to avoid saying one thing or another. And let’s not forget Bill Clinton’s utilization of these games is infamous. Paying attention to how we gays are being represented by one of the more famous people (James Franco) to address our community’s needs and concerns is not stalker-y — it’s called paying attention.
And what makes you think Franco wouldn’t be into me?
AKA William – as a gay man who has met and talked with James Franco, I can assure you (with my entire family’s life on the line) the man is not gay. I made a harmless joke about getting a kiss from him and he all but curled up in the fetal position (and while I’m not a model, I’m entirely kissable :). Every filmmaker I have met, male and female, who knows him says the same thing.
I get your thinking – he does explore gay life A LOT in his work – but he’s just a curious student of life. Be glad we’re in a time when someone as talented as him is unafraid to bring gay life in its many forms to mainstream audiences (and that he gives you the chance to see what you can’t have ;). The more visible our stories are, the more we gain acceptance in people’s eyes.
He’s cute, but unfortunately, he’s just not that into you. :/
@FilmDude,
Now, this, this is a thoughtful examination of what I’ve been writing about James Franco. And I agree that he is a curious student of life, and I also agree that we are lucky to have him focus his attention (and audience) on our community. In fact, New York Magazine recently did a lengthy piece on Franco and his work. Which means, yes, I’ll be writing another James Franco post shortly.
@FilmDude: It’s entirely possible that Franco doesn’t know you well enough to feel comfortable confiding in you. His work associates, same thing. From what you wrote, it doesn’t sound like you know him AT ALL, which would hardly give you the last word on his sexuality.
Student of life, my ass.
James Franco is at least bisexual or he’s gay and closeted it’s not that hard to tell.