James Franco Got a D in Acting Class, Will Probably Be Nominated for Oscar This Year

By John Mitchell Posted Sep 24th 2010 02:45PM

James Franco is a lot of things. He's a director, performance artist, published author, scholar, sculptor and model. A regular Renaissance man. We mostly know him as an actor, though, and a pretty good one at that.

One NYU professor, however, begs to differ, and issued the Golden Globe-winning star of recent Best Picture contender 'Milk' a D in his acting class, Showbiz 411 reports.

"I did the work, I did well in everything else," the actor said at the premiere of his latest film, 'Howl,' the story of Beat poet Allen Ginsberg's obscenity trial, for which he is earning positive reviews. Franco said that his acting professor likely felt uncomfortable teaching an already well-known actor, and also admitted to missing many classes because he was shooting director Danny Boyle's follow-up to 'Slumdog Millionaire,' '127 Hours.'

While Franco is earning applause for 'Howl,' it's his work in '127 Hours' that has critics calling him an Oscar shoo-in. The film -- about hiker Aron Ralston's torturous time spent trapped by a boulder in a desert cave (he was forced to amputate his own arm!) -- inspired a lengthy standing ovation when it screened at the Toronto International Film Festival.

Box Office Magazine is calling Franco's performance "a tour-de-force," and EW is saying that the buzz out of Toronto positions Franco as a lock for an Oscar nomination. Other likely contenders to emerge from the increasingly-important film festival: Colin Firth for 'The King's Speech' and Natalie Portman, who already wowed 'em in Venice with her turn in 'Black Swan.'

Franco certainly isn't letting one nasty grade get him down. The very busy 'Spider-Man' star is already enrolled at Yale and is working on his PhD in writing. His debut collection of short stories, 'Palo Alto,' drops October 19. 'Howl' opens in selected cities this weekend, and '127 Hours' hits screens in early November.

And if he needs further consoling, all he need do is take a look at his resume. Franco's 16 films have grossed nearly $1.5 billion (with a B) domestically; he's won a Golden Globe (for 'James Dean') and an Independent Spirit Award (for 'Milk'); been nominated for an Emmy, two Screen Actors Guild Awards and four MTV Movie Awards; and was even named Man of the Year by Harvard's Hasty Pudding Theatricals.

We're pretty sure someone will still hire the poor thing, even with a D on his transcripts.

Here's James talking to Showbiz 411's Roger Friedman about his D in acting class and explaining his now infamous nap during a lecture at Columbia:

Tags: James Franco

Comments

(20)

Friday 24 September

By Nico Toscani

Lowest Rank Vote down Vote up Report this

A D sounds about right. I just haven't seen anything from this guy that proves he can actually act. He's sure good at looking intense, but that's about it.

By leroy

HE DOES A BETTER JOB AT ACTING THAN A IDIOT LIKE YOU.LOL

High Rank Vote down Vote up Report this

That's SO clever, considering I'm not an actor.

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Sunday 26 September

By fenliangbuduo

I don't mean to dog him because I like him, but to say his films have grossed 1.5 billion...much of that figure is credited to the ginormous success of the Spiderman trilogy...just saying.I love this , So does My boyfriend .he is almost 11year older than me .i met him via agegapsingl es.c 'o'm a nice place for seeking age le ss love.which gives you a chance to make your life better and open opportunities for you to meet the attractive young girls and treat you like a king. Maybe you wanna check it out or tell your friends.. Just love it

By davemmm

Unfortunately, James was not nominated by the Academy in 2008 for his supporting role in "Milk." I thought it was much better than any of the performances that were nominated (including Heath Ledger's Joker, which I consider more of a leading performance -oh great article ,My boyfriend and i both think so ...He is almost 11year older than me .i met him via kissmilita ry.c' o'ma nice place for s'ee'king Army, Navy, Mari'nes, Air Force, Police Force and their admires.just love it

By HUH

Vote down Vote up Report this

Where on earth have you been? I am over 70 and I am well aware of his talent and what he has done in the past and I look forward to his future work.

Tuesday 28 September

By Ron3853

Unfortunately, James was not nominated by the Academy in 2008 for his supporting role in "Milk." I thought it was much better than any of the performances that were nominated (including Heath Ledger's Joker, which I consider more of a leading performance - Ledger should have won an Oscar in 2005 for "Brokeback Mountain"), and Franco should have won. But then again, the performances I think are the year's best only win about 60% of the time, anyway.

By Jackson

I don't mean to dog him because I like him, but to say his films have grossed 1.5 billion...much of that figure is credited to the ginormous success of the Spiderman trilogy...just saying.

Saturday 25 September

By Dana

actually he sucked on General Hospital. It's almost like he was about to laugh as he spoke his lines.

Monday 27 September

By B

I totally disagree with you. He did a great job on General Hospital.
His character is kind of crazy serial killer, it's a game to him. He was laughing, and taunting the authorities.

By Mark

MR.FRANCO IS A REALLY TERRIFIC ACTOR......THE PROFESSOR IS PROBABLY A FRUSTRATED "HATER!" D....FOR DISTINGUISHED!

By Lita

... or could it be that the teacher is a frustrated soul who wants desperately to be an actor but has rarely if ever been granted even so much as a call-back? And so now, the closest he can get to "treading the boards" is to teach acting?

By ihitemup000

He's awesome. I love Pineapple Express!!

By animar5

His mother was a better actor than him on General Hopital.

By Say what??

I guess that you consider yourself an expert in the field. How much do you make moneywise...enough to support yourself with your so called expertise???

By Fran

The word is 'tortuous,' not 'torturous.'

By bob parks

Never heard of him.

By gotcha

Oh, give the prof his props...he (the professor) MUST BE SO VERY WELL KNOWN, THAT HE/SHE COULDN'T STAND TO HAVE JAMES FRANCO HIM/HER. AFTERALL ALL, THE PROF IS THE TEACHER...HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA. WHAT AN EGO THE PROF HAS. MAKES ME SICK.

By opinion lady

Ok, I was actually thinking of this this weekend as I saw "Tristan and Isolde" which Franco stars in. I loved Pineapple Express...he was good. How hard of an acting job that was I don't know, but he was good. In Tristan and Isolde is when I realized he is not really a good actor. He is very "soap opera" in his abilities.....and I do not mean to insult those actors who are on soaps....its just that was the only note he seemed to be able to play in the movie I saw. I used to think he was good looking but he is not again well. I am curious as to his writing skills. He seems very ambitious and motivated. I do not think he will ever be a really good, interesting actor, but he is good enough for what he does do most of the time.

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