Boy from the wrong side of the tracks, leading man, action hero; with plum roles in three notable feature films, smoldering James Franco plays them all within the span of one year's time.
"By acting and inhabiting a different part and pretending to be in a different world there is something about it that frees up whatever isn't free in the real world," said Franco.
At 27, the guy has amassed a repertoire of more than 30 acting roles. Yet, it is the collective triage effect of his most recent films, the naval drama-ANNAPOLIS; epic love story-TRISTAN + ISOLDE; and the beloved comic book turned big budget flick series-SPIDER MAN, which have placed him front and center in the public spotlight.
In his latest release, Disney's ANNAPOLIS, Franco plays Jack Huard, a Maryland shipbuilder and amateur boxer who, while not an ideal candidate, yearns to attend the prestigious naval academy. To get prepped for the film's boxing and military scenes, in addition to training for six months at the Wild Card Boxing Club in Los Angeles, Franco along with the cast of ANNAPOLIS was subjected to an unexpected bout of boot training camp.
"A lot of the research I do on movies just ends up to be reading and study, and so when we had an Annapolis graduate who can not only tell you what it's like, and mentally prepare you, but actually put you through the physical paces – it can't help but make the performances more believable, realistic, and make the actors feel more comfortable with what they're doing," relayed Franco.
With respect to the medieval romance, TRISTAN + ISOLDE, Franco plays the title character of Tristan who, at a young age, lost his parents and became a fighter beholden to King Mark, who becomes his father figure. When Tristan falls in love with an Irish princess, the king also falls in love with her. Thus, the film proceeds into a story of royal politics where loyalty and convictions are pushed to their upper limits.
Explaining his film readiness procedure, "I do research just to familiarize myself with areas of the character that I'm not comfortable with. If I feel close enough to a character sometimes too much preparation can be ... damaging. I feel like if you have an instinct for a role you should just run with that."
Having been referred to by critics as a slow-burn, ticking time bomb and classically reserved actor, Franco's career essentially took flight after playing the legendary James Dean (2001) in the eponymous TNT mini-series for which he took home three awards: a Golden Globe, Screen Actors' Guild, and Broadcast Film Critics Association award for best performance by a male actor in a mini-series or a motion picture made for television role.
California born and raised, upon graduation from Palo Alto High School, Franco attended UCLA where he majored in English. To overcome his bout with shyness, during college, Franco found acting to be a save haven. Smitten with the dramatic arts, after only one year of higher education, Franco left UCLA to pursue his dreams of cinematic grandeur.
In an interview with Dark Horizons.com, when asked when he knew that he wanted to become an actor – Franco responded, "You know I always had the desire to do it. I grew up in the Bay area so it wasn't like growing up in LA where kids are going out to auditions all the time. To me, it didn't quite seem like a reality. But I did want to do it and started doing plays in high school and then came out to go to UCLA and it was suddenly a very real possibility."
After studying for fifteen months with Robert Carnegie's Playhouse West – Franco landed himself a small screen acting gig that of playing nihilistic freak Daniel Desario in the short-lived NBC television sitcom, Freaks & Geeks (1999). While not lauded at the time, the show did go on to become something of a cult favorite among loyal fans.
That same year, Franco also appeared in the mini-series To Serve and Protect and, opposite Drew Barrymore in the feature film-NEVER BEEN KISSED.
While he managed to continuously find work, it was not until 2001, when the opportunity emerged to play James Dean for TNT, that luck in the form of a rebellious deceased actor, finally came his way.
The following year (2002), his portrayal of Robert DeNiro's estranged, murder suspect son in CITY BY THE SEA earned him additional critical praise, in addition to, the opportunity to work with one of his lifelong role-models (others include Robert Duvall and Daniel Day Lewis).
And banking on the upsurge in his career, Franco auditioned for the leading part of Peter Parker in SPIDER MAN. Though, unfortunately, he lost out to Tobey Maguire--he did snare the role of his best friend Henry Osborne, which he has convincingly played in the first film, sequel, and impending 2007 tri-installation of the SPIDER MAN series. Interestingly enough, Franco, as part of his original contract, only signed on to do the first three pictures in the series. Thus, there is some foreshadowing as to whether or not, at some point in SPIDER MAN 3, his Osborne character will self-destruct.
Some of Franco's other credits include: John Dahl's THE GREAT RAID (2005)-a WWII POW military pix with Benjamin Bratt and Robert Altman's THE COMPANY-a dramatic | romantic ballet exposé starring Neve Capmbell.
And though named one of People Magazine's "50 Hottest Bachelors [2004]", Franco –self-described as an artsy loner – spends a good portion of his spare time working on projects under the umbrella of his production company, Rabbit Bandini Productions, and writing screenplays.
"Writing is very important to me, I do it every day," said Franco. "I think I work at it as hard as acting, the problem is I haven't had as much experience in the professional world of writing as I have in acting, so it's still much more immature than my acting."
Forthcoming projects for Franco include: GOOD TIME MAX--produced by Franco's Rabbit Bandini Productions--it tells the tale of two genius brothers who, in adulthood, lead divergently separate lives-one becomes a successful surgeon and the other a high-life, drug-taker and FLYBOYS-an adventure story about the Lafayette Escadrille, group of young Americans who volunteered for the French military before the U.S. entered World War I, and became the country's first fighter pilots.
Presently working at a gargantuan pace while also taking extension courses at UCLA, Franco seems to understand the important of both striking while the iron is hot and keeping his options open.
"Hopefully, down the road I will be able to manage my career the way Daniel Day Lewis has and be able to do one film every two years or something like that," commented Franco.
Well, if that becomes the case, on account of Franco's high-energy and versatility, were sure he will find something worthwhile to hold his interests....
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| Nancy Simon |
A Chicago-based freelance writer and film enthusiast, Nancy has an insatiable curiousity and knack for picking out talented, promising individuals.
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