James Franco claims sex addiction as he finally addresses misconduct allegations

Los Angeles, California - James Franco has finally broken his silence on the sexual misconduct accusations made against him in 2018.

James Franco addressed the sexual misconduct allegations made against him in 2018 for the first time in years.
James Franco addressed the sexual misconduct allegations made against him in 2018 for the first time in years.  © IMAGO/Picturelux

On Wednesday, snippets of the Pineapple Express star's candid interview with The Jess Cagle Podcast on SiriusXM dropped.

During the sit-down, Franco revealed why he finally decided to address the allegations.

"In 2018, there were some complaints about me and an article about me and, at that moment, I just thought 'I'm gonna be quiet. I'm gonna be... I'm gonna pause.' Did not seem like the right time to say anything," he recalled.

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The 43-year-old admitted there were "people that were upset with me and I needed to listen."

The Spring Breakers star went on to reveal that he's "been doing a lot of work" the past few years and used his prior experience with recovering from substance abuse to help him.

Franco reveals he has a "non-existent relationship" with Seth Rogen

Seth Rogen (r) professionally and personally distanced himself from Franco following the allegations made against him.
Seth Rogen (r) professionally and personally distanced himself from Franco following the allegations made against him.  © IMAGO/Allstar

Franco also claimed he struggled with sex addiction, which that led him "cheat on everyone" he was with before his current girlfriend, Isabel Pakzad.

"I didn't want to hurt people. In fact, I wasn't really a one-night-stand guy. People that I got together with or dated, I'd see them for a long time, years. It's just that I couldn't be present for any of them. And the behavior spun out to a point where it was like I was hurting everybody," the Oscar nominee remarked.

After confessing to sleeping with his former students, the Spider-man star also touched on his "non-existent" relationship with his "closest work friend," Seth Rogen.

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The actors knew each other since they were teenagers and frequently collaborated on projects together. However, following the scandal his former friend distanced himself from him professionally and personally.

Franco said of Rogen, "He was asked about me, and I just wanna say I absolutely love Seth Rogen… I love Seth Rogen. I worked with him for 20 years. We didn't have one fight for 20 years. Not one fight. He was my absolute closest work friend, collaborator. We just gelled."

He added, "What he said is true, you know, we aren't working together right now and we don't have any plans to work together. Of course, it was hurtful, in context, but I get it. He had to answer for me 'cause I was silent. He had to answer for me, and I don't want that. So that's why, that's one of the main reasons I wanted to talk to you today: I don't want Seth or my brother or anyone to have to answer for me anymore."

Earlier this year, a settlement was reached in the sexual misconduct lawsuit filed against Franco on behalf of his former students.

Cover photo: IMAGO/Picturelux

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