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James Franco on Seth Rogen distancing from him: 'He was my absolute closest work friend'

By Megan Armstrong | Last updated 12/22/21

James Franco is breaking his silence nearly four years after the Los Angeles Times published the alleged experiences of five women who say he committed sexual misconduct or sexually exploitative behavior while serving as their teacher or mentor at his since-defunct acting and film school.

The 43-year-old actor, director and producer sat down with SiriusXM's Jess Cagle and candidly discussed why he decided to wait until now to address the accusations and his history with sex addiction:

Franco also touched on Seth Rogen publicly distancing himself from him in a May interview with The Sunday Times (h/t People):

Franco and Rogen met while starring on Freaks and Geeks, which only lasted for one season from 1999 to 2000, and collaborated on several cult classic comedies, such as Pineapple Express (2008), This Is The End (2013) and The Interview (2014).

Earlier this year, Franco settled a lawsuit filed against him in 2019 by two of the women, agreeing to pay $2.2 million.

The full conversation between Cagle and Franco will release as the next episode of The Jess Cagle Podcast and air on The Jess Cagle Show on Thursday (Dec. 23).

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