We never really covered these photos of James Franco and Kate Hudson in early July on the London set of their new movie, Good People. Even though this pairing looks like a disaster, it is thankfully not a romantic comedy but a thriller. The film’s IMDb page provides the following synopsis: “[After] discovering a cache of cash in their dead tenant’s apt, a couple in debt take the money and find themselves the target of a deadly adversary-the thief who stole it.” That doesn’t really sound like a typical ARTsy fartsy Franco film, does it? My initial impression from looking at these photos is that poor Kate was all like, “Whoa, this dude is as much a douche as people say.” But I could be wrong.
Those who often roll their eyes at the Franco had best sit down for this next bit of news, which is that Franco has sealed a deal for his very own reality show on the Ovation network (Ever heard of it? I have not). According to Variety, “The show sees the word of art through James’ eyes,” and you know what that means — the artful Franco booty will come out to play. Some of you might be excited about the prospect, but I am not. ART:
Just when James Franco couldn’t seem to get any busier, he goes and tops himself.
The prolific actor-writer-director-teacher and all-around polymath will star and executive produce an unscripted series in which he’ll explore his many personal artistic pursuits and passions. Ten hourlong episodes of “James Franco Presents” will premiere in November on cable network Ovation.
With “Presents,” Franco will pull back the curtain on the many side projects he is perpetually involved with, from his latest art exhibit to his work in collegiate classrooms. The series will give viewers a glimpse at highlights of the hundreds of hours of video he’s shot over the years that’s never been seen before, including some of his experimental short films. In addition to plumbing his past work, Franco will also let cameras tag along in other facets of his professional life as well.
“Presents” will also venture beyond Franco’s own work to highlight everything from interesting trends in the art world to other up-and-coming artists. Although the series delves into Franco’s life, Ovation chief creative officer Robert Weiss characterized “Presents” not as a reality show but an “anthology docuseries.”
“The show sees the word of art through James’ eyes,” he said. “All the different exploits that James is involved in, this show encompasses.” While Franco appears in every episode as the host introducing each segment, his screen time will vary depending on how much he himself is a subject of each hour.
“Presents” is a coup for Ovation, an independent arts-and-entertainment cable network in 50 million homes across the U.S. With Franco on board, the network is bringing another high-profile figure to make the arts world sexy; Anna Wintour toplines unscripted series “The Fashion Fund” in December and imported British acquisition “Young Doctors’ Notebook” stars Jon Hamm and Daniel Radcliffe.
“This series with James Franco is the biggest series to ever be on Ovation,” Weiss said.
“Presents” marks Franco’s first primetime series since his breakthrough role on the NBC dramedy “Freaks & Geeks,” which bowed in 1999.
[From Variety]
Seriously, whose idea was this nonsense? I cannot even fathom looking forward to the next episode of something called “James Franco Presents.” I wonder if we’ll receive a glimpse of Franco as a college professor whose students write him bad evaluations and treat him the same way as he did when an NYU professor gave him a “D” grade. That probably won’t happen though. I bet Franco does a lot of delegation on campus. Can you imagine being a teaching assistant for Franco? The horror.
In other douchey news, Franco will be roasted by “Comedy Cenral” on September 2. I really am looking forward to that event. I realize that some of you often admit to being inexplicably attracted to the dude, and I’m starting to see that there’s an undercurrent of Francofans out there. My own gay boyfriend thinks Franco is seriously hot, but all I see is a douchey guy who looks like a “Dallas” extra.
Photos courtesy of WENN
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