After James Franco faced several sexual misconduct accusations in 2018, a number of actors ended their working relationship with him.
Not least his former friend and movie star Seth Rogen, who has worked with him on numerous projects, starting in 1999 on the TV show Freaks and Geeks.
However, it seems Tyrese Gibson made his mind up on Franco way back in 2006.
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The pair starred together in the Justin Lin-led Annapolis, which follows a young working-class man named Jake (Franco) who attends the US Naval Academy in Maryland.
Amid skepticism from his father (Brian Goodman), Jake comes across Midshipman Lieutenant Cole (Gibson), a tough superior determined to test his limits.
You can take a look at the trailer below:
While the two actors were making a name for themselves in Hollywood at the time, in Annapolis, Jake and Cole's rivalry spills over in the Academy's annual boxing tournament, the Brigades.
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After confronting each other in the final match, Cole wins by decision, but recommends that Jake remain at the Academy due to his determination.
However, this scene is why the Fast X star doesn't want to work with the Pineapple Express actor again.
“I was always like, ‘James, lighten up, man. We’re just practicing.’ He never lightened up,” he explained in a 2007 interview with Elle Magazine.
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“I respect method actors, but he never snapped out of character. Whenever we’d have to get in the ring for boxing scenes, and even during practice, the dude was full-on hitting me.”
Gibson added to Playboy Magazine: “I never want to work with him again, and I’m sure he feels the same way. It felt very personal. It was f**ked up.”
Franco, who settled his sexual assault lawsuit in 2021, also said of the film in 2014: “I take full blame for any problems on that film. If he had a bad experience working with me, I was probably a jerk.
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“I was not purposely cruel to him, but I was probably so wrapped up in my performance that I was not as friendly as I could have been.
“But when I’m asked about it in the press it makes it seem as if it’s still an issue.
“I think Tyrese is a sweet guy with a good heart. I wish him all the best.”
Well, it clearly wasn't worth the fuss, after the film scored an underwhelming 10 percent score on Rotten Tomatoes, at the time of writing.
Topics: Film, James Franco, Seth Rogen, Boxing, Celebrity, Entertainment, TV and Film
Anish Vij