James Franco quite simply does not regret making The Interview, even if turned out to be way more trouble than it was literally worth. As of Jan. 7, the film, which cost an estimated $75 million to make and market, had brought in about $31 million through On Demand and another $6 million from a limited theatrical release.
But when Variety talked to Franco at a Sundance event to promote his new film I Am Michael, and asked if he regretted making the movie, which was pulled before its release in thousands of mainstream theaters, he responded with a simple "no."
"It was really out of my hands. It was a situation where there was nothing for me to do to. As soon as they called the press off, and the movie was pulled from theaters, there was nothing to do. They weren’t looking to me to make any decisions. It was just sitting around and staying quiet. That said, there was this pressure. There was so much attention on it — attention on a level you never expected. It was a shock to my system, and I got sick. But I was never scared for my safety or anything," Franco said.
As for what he's onto now, Franco was promoting I Am Michael, in which he plays a real-life gay rights activist who renounced his homosexuality and turned to Christianity.
The movie has been getting extra attention due to a supposedly intense threesome scene between Franco, Star Trek star Zachary Quinto and Charlie Carver (Desperate Housewives) that includes Franco licking someone's armpit.
"I knew [director] Justin [Kelly] wasn’t going to take it too far or go on for too long. You play it too safe, and it’s just lame. So I went as far as I could before Justin said cut," Franco said. "I can't even rememer what happened. I think I was going for it more than they were."
[Via Variety]
