James Franco to Attend SAG Awards Amid Misconduct Claims

Even though many women have come forward and accused James Franco of sexual misconduct, he will still attend the SAG Awards on Sunday.

James Franco Red
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James Franco arrives at The Art of Elysium celebrating the 10th Anniversary held at Red Studios on January 7, 2017 in Los Angeles, California.

James Franco Red

Regardless of the multiple women who have come forward and accused James Franco of sexual misconduct, he still plans on showing up to the Screen Actors Guild Awards on Sunday. Franco has been nominated for outstanding performance by a male actor in a leading role for The Disaster Artist.

While Franco was riding high after his win at the 2018 Golden Globes—Best Actor in a Musical or Comedy for The Disaster Artist—it all came crashing down shortly after. Following his win, The Breakfast Club actress Ally Sheedy sent out a series of since-deleted tweets. "James Franco just won," she wrote. "Please never ever ask me why I left the film/tv business." While her tweets didn't directly accuse Franco, what happened next pretty much sealed the deal.

Multiple women took to Twitter and called Franco out for his past sexual misconduct, including an incident that took place in 2014, where a then-17-year-old girl supplied proof that he slid into her Instagram DMs. Another woman, Violet Paley, blasted Franco's decision to wear a Time's Up pin and faulted him for sexual misconduct. Franco's scheduled New York TimesTimesTalks—where he was to lead a discussion about The Disaster Artist—was later canceled.

Just hours before the Los Angeles Times released a new report that included the accounts of five women who had been subjected to Franco's "sexually exploitative behavior," Franco appeared on Late Night with Seth Meyers to clear the air, though his response was a bit muddled.

“I have my own side of this story," Franco said. "But I believe in these people that have been underrepresented getting their stories out enough that I will hold back things that I could say, just because I believe in it that much. If I have to take a knock because I’m not going to try and actively refute things, then I will, because I believe in it that much." Franco gave a similar response during an earlier interview on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.

One of Franco's accusers from the Times report, actress Sarah Tither-Kaplan, was willing to make peace with him. "I don’t hate James," she told TMZ. "I still have love for him."

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