From “Freaks and Geeks” to fallout: Inside the bitter end of James Franco and Seth Rogen’s bromance

It’s always bittersweet when friendships end, but the 25-year bond between actors James Franco and Seth Rogen seems to have ended on a note more bitter than sweet.

A once popular duo in stoner comedies like “Pineapple Express,” “This Is The End,” and “The Interview,” Rogen and Franco’s friendship was a staple in Hollywood for some time, tracing all the way back to one of their first projects together, “Freaks and Geeks.”

In recent years, Franco has only had a smattering of credits following his 2018 #MeToo reckoning, when former acting students accused him of sexual misconduct and exploitative behavior. The Academy Award nominee later settled a lawsuit with two of the women in 2021. Since then, he’s kept a relatively low profile, appearing in only a few projects, none of which featured his former friend and frequent co-star. 

In a recent candid interview with Variety, Franco opened up about his falling out with Rogen . . . keeping it vague on one very important detail when it came to theorizing why they no longer speak.

So what happened to the longstanding, two-decade friendship between Rogen and Franco? Salon explains the fallout:

A comedy duo is born in Seth Rogen and James Franco 

The two comedy actors first met on the set of the 1999 teen classic “Freaks and Geeks,” when Rogen was 17 and Franco was 22. They wouldn’t work closely together again until the release of “Pineapple Express” in 2008, although Franco did have a cameo in the 2007 Judd Apatow comedy “Knocked Up,” which starred Rogen.

Reflecting on their early years, Rogen said in 2008, “We didn’t have a falling out or anything; he just became very successful after ‘Freaks and Geeks,’ and I just sat on my couch and researched this movie for two years.”

The two would go on to co-star in numerous films, including “This Is The End,” “Sausage Party,” “The Interview” and “The Disaster Artist.” Rogen also worked with Franco’s brother, Dave, in “Neighbors.” Among Franco’s roles, his portrayals of Tommy Wiseau in “The Disaster Artist” and Aron Ralston in “127 Hours” received the most critical acclaim.

At the 2017 SXSW festival, Rogen remarked, “I generally have a movie with a Franco here almost every single year.”

Franco gets hit with five accusations of sexual misconduct and a lawsuit follows

However good it started out, the relationship between Rogen and Franco had a noticeable cooling-off period. After the pair were nominated for Golden Globes for their work directing and producing “The Disaster Artist,” the allegations against Franco hit the news.

Five women came forward in a Los Angeles Times investigation and stated that Franco abused his power as their teacher at his film school. They alleged that he manipulated them into performing sex acts, including allegedly removing safety guards while filming an oral sex scene. The actor would go on to settle a sexual misconduct lawsuit for $2.2 million in 2021.

From the jump, Rogen remained somewhat neutral when it came to his comments on the allegations against his friend, saying in an interview with Vulture in 2018, “The truth is that my perspective on this is the least relevant perspective. I’m friends with these people and I’m a dude. All that combined makes me the last person who should be talking about this.” He did, however, say at the time that the allegations did not change his willingness to work with Franco in the future. 

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Several years later, in an interview with the Sunday Times, Rogen revealed that the allegations against Franco changed their relationship. When asked if he thought of himself as an enabler of Franco’s alleged abuse, Rogen said, “What I can say is that I despise abuse and harassment and I would never cover or conceal the actions of someone doing it, or knowingly put someone in a situation where they were around someone like that.”

Mentioning the previously linked Vulture interview, he furthered, “I also look back to that interview in 2018 where I comment that I would keep working with James, and the truth is that I have not and I do not plan to right now.”

Without coming right out and saying it, Rogen hinted that the relationship was on its way towards being a past tense thing, saying, “I can say it, um, you know, it has changed many things in our relationship and our dynamic.”

When asked if the transition without Franco was hurtful, Rogen said at that time, “Yeah. But not as painful and difficult as it is for a lot of other people involved. I have no pity for myself in this situation.”

After Rogen’s interview, Franco said on “The Jess Cagle Show,” “I love Seth Rogen. I worked with him for 20 years. We didn’t have one fight for 20 years. Not one fight.”

He continued, “He was my absolute closest work friend, collaborator. And we just gelled and what he said is true, 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.”

Franco opens up about his life post-lawsuit and his friendship with Rogen

In an interview released last week, Franco revealed how challenging the last several years have been for him. Despite the public cancellation, he said, “I’m so grateful to be working. I did go through a lawsuit, and during that lawsuit, I wasn’t working.” He continued, “Up until, let’s say the past eight years [before the hiatus] I had a good career. But it was very hard for me to enjoy it.”

The actor did not see his expulsion from Hollywood as a negative. He shared, “I mean, it is what it is. I’ve honestly moved past it. It was dealt with, and I got to change. So that’s it, it’s over. I mean, I’ve worked in the U.S. too. So I’m just trying to move on.”

Overall, Franco expresses being thankful for his fall from grace, saying, “Being told you’re bad is painful. But ultimately, that’s kind of what I needed to just stop going the way I was going.”

In his sobriety, Franco said he has realigned his life. But he is no longer in touch with Rogen.

“No. I haven’t talked to Seth. I love Seth, we had 20 great years together, but I guess it’s over. And not for lack of trying. I’ve told him how much he’s meant to me.”