Dave Franco spent years being mistaken for early villain characters he played, but he wants the public to know that he’s not an “asshole.”
The Idiots star appeared on the August 27 episode of podcast Happy Sad Confused and told host Josh Horowitz that being cast as unpleasant characters made people think he was just as offensive in real life.
“Because I'm not on social media, I realized like, ‘Oh, people can't see the real me as often as other people kind of–however they put themselves out there on social media,’” said the actor. “And so they're really just looking at my work and they're kind of like putting, you know, whatever opinion on me that they want based on the roles I play.”
Franco admitted that he played “a lot of assholes and douchebags early on,” which resulted in public consequences. “And so everyone was like, "Yeah, fuck that guy. He must be like that,’” he said.
With Franco notably playing antagonists in Hoppers, Neighbors, 21 Jump Street and Superbad, he recalled meeting people who were “surprised” that he was nice in real life.
“I've been doing this for nearly twenty years now and I've done enough interviews now that I hope that people get a sense of who I really am,” he said, adding that playing “villainous characters” is “fun.”
Franco has previously shared his openness to portray his doppelgänger, Luigi Mangione, the suspect who’s accused of killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in December 2024. Earlier this month, the 28-year-old pleaded guilty to federal charges in connection with the incident but still faces charges in New York of second-degree murder and gun possession charges in Pennsylvania.
