5:08
- ABC News
- January 11, 2018
Women allege James Franco sexually exploited them
They shared their stories with the Los Angeles Times.
Another woman, Violet Paley, said she was an aspiring filmmaker when she met Franco in 2016. She said she and Franco had a mentor-mentee relationship that turned romantic. But one night, she alleged that she was in a car with Franco and she felt compelled to perform oral sex on him because \"the power dynamic was really off.\"
On Twitter and in the L.A. Times article, Paley said Franco offered her an apology a few weeks ago.
A couple weeks ago, James offered me & a few other girls an overdue, annoyed, convenient phone “apology”. I don’t accept, but maybe some other people’s lives would be made easier if he donated all of his earnings from “The Disaster Artist” to @RAINN01.
— Violet Paley (@VioletPaley) January 9, 2018
A request for comment from Franco's attorney, Michael Plonsker, was not immediately returned to ABC News.
Plonsker referred the L.A. Times to comments the actor made on Jan. 9 on \"The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.\" Plonsker also told the paper that specific allegations from Paley and others are \"not accurate.\"
Franco spoke with Colbert Tuesday night about claims on social media, some of which were from women also interviewed by the L.A. Times, that he behaved inappropriately.
\"I pride myself on taking responsibility for things I've done,\" he said, reiterating his position that the accounts were false.
Franco also appeared on \"Late Night with Seth Meyers,\" on Wednesday, and once again said the claims on Twitter were \"not accurate.\"
He has said that although he disputes the claims, he supports the idea that women and other groups should be able to speak out.
\"One of the things that I've learned is that this is a conversation that obviously needs to be had,\" he told Meyers. \"There are people, women and others who have not been a part of this conversation.\"
\"There are stories that need to get out, there are people that need to be heard,\" Franco continued. \"I have my own side of this story, but I believe in ... these people that have been underrepresented getting their stories out, enough that I will ... hold back things that I could say just because I believe in it that much. And if I have to take a knock because I'm not going to ... actively refute things, then I will.\"
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