Top quotes by James Franco

A lot of the people in San Francisco think of themselves as healers - not just as people delivering this base service, but giving their clients spiritual help. It's almost like being an actor, playing a different part for each trick. Votes: 20

I'm starting to teach now: I teach in the graduate film program at NYU and next year I'm going to be teaching at Los Angeles at the film program and English program at UCLA. Votes: 18

There's a tendency, when you're directing yourself, not to give the performance as much care, because you feel like there's too much focus on yourself, or that all these people are just standing around setting everything up, waiting for you. Votes: 17

I worked the drive-through at McDonald's and tried out different accents - Italian, Russian, Irish. Votes: 16

They say living well is the best revenge but sometimes writing well is even better. Votes: 14

I needed an outlet in high school and came across painting. I've actually been painting longer than I've been acting. A movie is a collaborative effort, and with painting you just have yourself. Votes: 13

When I went to film school about three years ago, the first two years you're required to make a series of short films. I started making films based on short poems. Votes: 13

Directing, editing, and everything about filmmaking has definitely changed me as an actor. Votes: 12

It feels really sad, to me, to go to a dark bedroom. It's like surrendering to the night or something. Votes: 11

The new critique you're gonna start hearing about James Franco, is 'He's spreading himself too thin.' Votes: 11

In the end, I do have a group of friends and teachers whose opinions I respect, and so I guess I just have to be content with their feedback. Votes: 10

I still don't like going to bed alone. Votes: 10

If the work is good, what does it matter? I'm doing it because I love it. Why not do as many things I love as I can? As long as the work is good. Votes: 8

I'm a huge Cormac McCarthy fan and have read every book of his. Votes: 8

Reviews about film acting are very... tricky, because movies are such a collaborative thing. Votes: 7

I don't need a vacation in the traditional sense, like I would if I had a job I hated. Votes: 6

When I was a child, I wanted to be an actor, but I had really bad buckteeth. I didn't want to get braces, but my mom said I couldn't be an actor if I didn't get the braces. So, I got the braces. Votes: 6

My style is casual-chic? Casual-messy? Votes: 6

I'm going to try to not let anyone put me in a box, and that certainly applies to the things I do outside of acting. Votes: 5

I don't like sleeping in a bed. Votes: 5

School allowed me to have outlets so that some of the pressure was taken off the acting. Every role in every movie, I used to live or die by. Once I had these new outlets, I relaxed a lot more. Votes: 5

Dreams and expectations also have the very dark flipside of disappointment, broken dreams. Votes: 5

I'm a big cardigan sweater guy. Votes: 5

One of the things I've learned as a filmmaker is to have some aspect of the movie be something that I admire greatly, whether that's an actor I'm working with, the subject matter, or a book. Votes: 4

Not having any real direction, one writer would lead me to another. Votes: 4

I am very grateful for my life. I think one of the keys to not being depressed is to find gratitude and to be grateful for what you have. So I am grateful for what I have. Votes: 4

You are successful if you are able to work on the kind of material that you want to - if your life conforms to your dreams, regardless of outside acceptance or acclaim. Votes: 3

There's a large chunk of me in all the parts. As an actor, I got involved largely because I want to let things out. The best acting is that that is most real and the only way to do that, is to genuinely feel it. Votes: 3

When I was starting out, doing guest spots on TV, and even commercials, I would go in with a whole crazy wardrobe and some terrible accent. Obviously, I was doing too much. If you bring too much flavor to it, it's absurd. There's something to just being spontaneous. Votes: 1

When I sign on for a project, I'm there to give the director all the material he or she might need to tell their story, and that's the number one priority. Votes: 1

My name is James Edward Franco. Ted is a nickname for Edward. That's what my parents called me. I also got 'Teddy Ruxpin' a lot. It just got to a point where I got sick of it, so when a teacher called out 'James Franco' my junior year of high school, I didn't correct her. Votes: 0

Sometimes I think to myself, what should James Franco say next? And then it comes to me. Boobs. Votes: 0

The first piece of art that I ever bought-when I could afford it-was a Warhol sketch from the period when he was just getting out of doing commercial work and more into art. It's a sketch of a young guy's face. I guess the gallery that I bought it from thought I would like it because the young guy kind of looked like James Dean. Votes: 0

There's a long tradition of teen comedies where the kids are getting drunk on beer and whatever else, so smoking a joint to me is no worse than having a beer. So, if someone has a problem with it, I'll just tell them to relax. Votes: 0

If liking Katy Perry and drinking margaritas is gay, then who wants to be straight?! Votes: 0

I was a black center in the middle of all the nature. I was nothing, but I could do anything. Votes: 0

Did you ever see Cheech and Chong's Up in Smoke? That's what happens if you really smoke weed and make a movie. You get two guys and no plot and it's basically like, 'Yeah! Let's drive a van made of weed!' And that's pretty much the movie. Votes: 0

The selfie is the new way to look someone right in the eye and say, 'Hello, this is me.' Votes: 0

The general view is that actors start on soaps and then maybe graduate to prime-time television or film; normally you don't see a film actor going to do a soap. Votes: 0

When we were doing 'Freaks and Geeks', I didn't quite understand how movies and TV worked, and I would improvise even if the camera wasn't on me. I thought I was helping the other actors by keeping them on their toes, but nobody appreciated it when I would trip them up. So I was improvising a little bit back then, but not in a productive way. Votes: 0

It's hard when you're doing a film based on a true story to really figure out what all those relationships were. Votes: 0

You say I sucked at the Oscars. I was a genius at the Oscars. That was experimental tuxedo sleep art. Votes: 0

I was supposed to go out with this girl, but the plans mixed up because I was working late. So I went to her apartment with a flower. She was asleep, but I really wanted to see her. I figured I'd be like Romeo, and climbed up to her balcony and gave her a rose. She was very shocked. After that, it was over. Votes: 0

You work really hard to make it, and maybe you get some acclaim, but then you realize there are certain limitations as an actor. Votes: 0

There's a tacit belief that actors shouldn't write books, they're sort of allowed to direct movies but there will be a lot of skepticism, and they shouldn't do artwork or music. There are these invisible roadblocks to gain entree to these areas for actors, and you kind of have to crash through those invisible barriers. Votes: 0

I love to bring humour into my work. Because comedy is not a huge part of the art world. And big-business film takes itself very seriously. Votes: 0

I become kind of obsessive about research. Votes: 0

I guess what I enjoy most is directing, because it incorporates all aspects of filmmaking. Directing is in the same line as acting - both are popularity contests, and in both you're trying to tell a story through the film as a medium. Votes: 0

I might have to stumble a little bit more in public than others, but that's fine, I don't mind, I've developed a thick skin. Votes: 0

I was an English major at UCLA when I was 18, and then I left after a year to start acting. I was educating myself during that time. Votes: 0

My job is what I love. I don't need an escape from it. Votes: 0

Sometimes I get a little sad, and I feel like being alone. Then I talk to my cat about it, and he reminds me I'm James Franco. Then we dance. Votes: 0

I used to care about how I looked. Now I don't care as much. Maybe it's because I'm so handsome. Votes: 0

Create your world around your work. Create your work around your life. Let other people help you shape it. Votes: 0

All I know is that when I needed McDonald's , McDonald's was there for me. Votes: 0

Quite Franc-ly, I think I am an asset to this world we live in. I know that if I didn't exist, there would be some truly upset people just waiting for me. A life without Franco is like a kitten without fur. That's what my reflection told me. Votes: 0

If this is the only life, then why I'm not just doing everything I want to do. Votes: 0

There's no relationship that I find that's closer than a creative relationship. Votes: 0

For whatever reason, I have an emotional life that wants to come out. Votes: 0

I feel there are so many things in this world that have been and are being created that I could spend the rest of my life thinking about, and I couldn't cover all the things I'm interested in. That to me is what makes life sweet-learning and exploring. Votes: 0

For April Fools Day, someone played a really cruel joke on me. They stole ALL my mirrors and I had to go hours without seeing myself. I mean, I couldn't even do my daily affirmations. What kind of world is this? I tell you, it's artists like myself that really suffer. Votes: 0

I don't consider weed to be any worse than having a beer. Votes: 0

You want to be interesting? Be interested. Votes: 0

I don't even like to sleep - I feel as if there's too much to do. Votes: 0

If I'm working on a film, I'll do sit-ups for before I shoot. Like, 100 in the morning or something. Votes: 0

Everyone pretends to be normal and be your best friend, but underneath, everyone is living some other life you don't know about, and if only we had a camera on us at all times, we could go and watch each other's tapes and find out what each of us was really like. Votes: 0

Almost all the movies I've directed are adaptations. And I think what I found when I went to film school, where they try to push you to find your voice or your thing, is that I got a lot of things out of adaptations. Votes: 0

Sometimes it is painful to be oneself; at other times it seems impossible to escape oneself. Votes: 0

If you just read the book, you're taking in the narrative, you're taking in the characters, you're understanding it in a certain way. If you make a movie it's really an act of translation. Votes: 0

Always have one artistic thing that is pure, at least one thing, where you don't compromise. You can do other things to make money, but have one pure area. Votes: 0

I've been acting for many years now, and I find there's nothing I enjoy more than making films with my friends and people I like, who also are the funniest people around. Votes: 0

I drank from the bottle again and it was a scary plunge because I always wanted to take too much. It hurt, but it was also impressive, like being in the hands of a bigger force. And because of that, a relief. Votes: 0

Teens today rule the world. The whole culture - movies, music - is pointed at young people. They have so 'much' power. Votes: 0

I put out a lot of different kinds of material, and maybe people read that as egotistical. Or maybe, since a lot of it does involve some aspect of me, they find it self-aggrandizing. But there's a long tradition of artists using themselves. Look, I know I'm not perfect. And, who knows, maybe a part of it has to do with self-obsession. But it's also about using this weird thing that is a public persona as raw material for creative projects. Votes: 0

I'm an actor, I do movies, and I need to find somebody who enjoys that kind of stuff. It's not like, "Oh, I have my work time, and we go on a date, and it better be darn fun and exciting!" I think it should all coalesce a bit more. Votes: 0

There's so much pressure put on relationships to deliver the satisfaction of life. And to me, that is just not the answer. I feel like it should be something in addition to what you love or be a part of that. Votes: 0

I don't have many hobbies. If I think of hobbies, maybe ping pong. But I don't have a desire to get a ping pong medal. Votes: 0

I went to NYU graduate film school and met Pam [Romanowsky], and after doing a few things with her I thought she had the right sensibility and that she could figure it [The Adderall Diaries] out. Votes: 0

I guess it's ironic. I just did the Gucci cologne ad, and I was the cologne thief in junior high. Votes: 0

I view filmmaking as a director's medium. Votes: 0

You don't really prepare for a kissing scene. Votes: 0

Most of the books that I've adapted I'm doing because I love the book and I feel like it's a great work of art in itself, and when it's a great book I feel as a director or a writer that I have a responsibility to rise to the level of the original. It makes me try to reach higher. Votes: 0

He was so. So dirty, and just moving in front of me, and cute. I was in love with him, especially because he was talking to me. Votes: 0

I have high aspirations. I want to be an architect. Votes: 0

I love that the idea of examining memory, and the way memory is edited was made more interesting because it was being filtered through a writer. Votes: 0

When I was younger, I didn't know that I should just listen to my own voice, my own artistic sense of things when I was choosing projects, because one of the biggest creative decisions that an actor can make in the film business is what you will work on. Votes: 0

I've decided I can't really control people's perceptions of me. All I can do is decide on what I work on and how hard I work on it. Votes: 0

When I was younger, I thought, 'Ok, I'm supposed to do this project because it'll help my career,' but that didn't work because I ended up doing movies that I worked really hard on but I didn't really like and they didn't turn out well, so it was like I lost double. Once I just started working with people and projects I believed in, everything changed and I suddenly had a career that I loved and that I was proud of. Votes: 0

When I was a young actor, I just didn't understand how to function in this business as an artist. It is a business, it's called the film business for a reason, there's money involved. But on the flip side, nowadays I do not let the business side of it rule either. It's a balance. Votes: 0

The wind came in languid gusts like whispered reminders. Votes: 0

Japanese moe relationships socially dysfunctional men develop deep attachments to body pillows with women painted on them. Votes: 0

Fight scenes are really more like dances than they are fights, because you're depending on your partner to do the right move at the right time. Yes, a tough person or somebody who knows what they're doing will look better in a fight scene, but it also has a lot to do with the other person. Votes: 0

"The Wolfpack" is a real life clash of life and fiction and the saving power of brotherhood and make-believe. Votes: 0

I actually don't smoke weed, but I've played a lot of stoners - especially with Seth Rogen. Votes: 0

A director on a film really sets the tone of how people go about things, so everybody is happy to be at work and everybody does their best. Votes: 0

If many people love me, then I must be important. Votes: 0

I personally just love movies about the creative process. Votes: 0

I learned a lot of good things in my school. I've audited a lot of other schools, and I guess after a while I got a little tired of the acting school atmosphere. Votes: 0

There's this phenomenon where people do like to announce movies that they think I'm doing that I'm not. Votes: 0

We all age. You shouldn't discount it as a subject for a film. Just because the characters are dealing with issues that you might not deal with for another 45 years doesn't mean you won't like it. Votes: 0

For some reason, when I was in junior high school, my friends and I had, like, a cologne-stealing ring. Votes: 0

I teach a lot - I teach at the UCLA and USC graduate film programs - and a lot of those projects are my students' projects that I act in or I do a cameo. Votes: 0

I have a lot of books optioned. This one sat around for a while - part of that was just because I was trying to figure it out, and I didn't realize I needed Pam [Romanowski] to figure it out - but I'm not somebody that likes to option books and then sit on them. Votes: 0

If you have a profession that depends on what you look like, you can't blame somebody for caring about that. It's part of their job. So it's vanity but it's also not in a lot of cases. It's being professional. Votes: 0

I loved the world of Oz. I guess as a young man, I was just drawn to fantasy worlds. I liked being transported to alternative realms where a lot of my early imagination was sparked. Votes: 0

Adapting a book is essentially a collaboration, whether the author is alive or dead. Votes: 0

Sometimes rabbits, like, turn me on. I don't know why. Votes: 0

When I research a role it does get a little crazy and maybe even a little stupid. Votes: 0

But I don't want to die! I have so much to do! Votes: 0

I was kind of scared of failing at acting. Votes: 0

I don't cast somebody that I think is like my younger self. Votes: 0

I am not going to be the guy who's not pulling his weight. Votes: 0

I get like six or so hours of sleep a night. Votes: 0

Acting is an art form and you want to take roles that are challenged and it's more of a challenge I think to play dark characters. Not that I want to always play those, but it is a challenge and challenges are rewarding and fun. Votes: 0

When I started writing after my career as an actor, I knew that that other life in the film industry would be pulled into my writing life and that people would see me not as an author but as an actor starting to write. Votes: 0

I am actually turned off when I look at an account and don't see any selfies, because I want to know whom I'm dealing with. In our age of social networking, the selfie is the new way to look someone right in the eye and say, 'Hello, this is me.' Votes: 0

I don't go on vacation. I don't really need vacation. Votes: 0

I worked at a McDonald's drive-through. I could always tell when girls were interested: They'd drive around again and say, 'I forgot something.' Votes: 0

Villains can often be one note and I would say in that case, it's not fun to play the villain. It's fun to play the villain if he a) has dimension and b) the villain gets to do all the things in the movie that in life he would get punished for. In the movie, you're applauded for them if you do them with panache. And so that's why it's more fun to play the villain. Votes: 0

We fell in love last night. He's the coolest guy. Votes: 0

I always see nice images like that but I don't know what to do with them. I guess you share them with someone. Or you write them down in a poem. I had so many of those little images, but I never shared them or wrote any of them down. Votes: 0

This was the way the night had cashed in. Choices had been made and things happened, and here we were. It was sad, and funny. My life was made of this. Stuff like this. Votes: 0

...it can be so boring being you sometimes, and if you were the most special thing like that, it could be really great, but maybe some people say the same thing about you, and you want to tell those people: 'No, you're stupid, it's no fun being me. Votes: 0

It's basically the best job in the world. If you're fortunate enough - and I consider myself fortunate - you get to work with your friends and you get to work on projects that interest you. Votes: 0

You just don't really rehearse kissing scenes, whether it's male or female. Votes: 0

Showing the addiction and unusual sexual practices are ways of just outlining a much bigger character trait. Votes: 0

I get to work with incredibly talented young filmmakers and students, and their attitudes and relationship with film is still so pure. That re-inspires me and reminds me why I got into it and what I love about film, and allows me a little reprieve from the business side of it. And it rekindles my love of film. Votes: 0

I love collaboration of all kinds, and I love the way that collaboration pulls me into directions I wouldn't go in if I was working on my own. Votes: 0

We tell specific stories about ourselves to ourselves and we're all the heroes of our own lives. But you live through certain experiences with other people, and sometimes they have very different takes on what happened. Votes: 0

I think as far as straight actors playing gay roles, "Brokeback Mountain" was a big breakthrough. I'm pretty sure when they were casting that movie that - I think the story is, like you know, 10 to 15 other actors turned it down. Votes: 0

I think all great comedies - or at least the comedies I like - it has some of the funniest moments, but it never breaks the spell for the audience. It never pushes the audience away by spoofing itself too much or undermining the characters or making them cardboard or flimsy. Everybody is really trying to do what their characters believe in - and so nobody breaks the spell of the world, even though in other ways it's a comedy and very funny. Votes: 0

I've come to a point where I just want to do movies that I just believe in. I have come to an understanding of filmmaking, a new understanding where I believe it's a director's medium. That means working with people that I believe in. Votes: 0

I got arrested for graffiti. I got arrested - a lot of, like, underage drinking, drunk in public, shoplifting, you know, your various, like, suburban arrests, I guess. Votes: 0

I think it helps the writers to sell their books if they announce my attachment. But it doesn't mean that I'm going to make the movies in the next year or two or three. Votes: 0

As an actor in the classroom, you're revealing so much, and teachers are, you know, they're just critiquing like a painting or a piece of work; it's like, it's you, and it's your emotions that they're working with. Votes: 0

I still work really hard, but I like to think I'm a little smarter about at least the type of movie I'm getting into. Votes: 0

I start movies with people that I believe in and people with visions, you know, that I believe in. And so if it doesn't kind of come together in the right way, at least I was doing it because I believed in the person and the movie. Votes: 0

I loved the book [The Adderall Diaries] I optioned it, I think some years ago. But there's a lot of different threads in the book. It starts off as one thing, where he's trying to cover this murder trial, and then his own life starts to impinge on that, so it becomes something else. I found that fascinating. Votes: 0

When I read the book [The Adderall Diaries] I loved it, and I maybe had an inkling that there was a lot of good material in there. I didn't quite know at the time how to adapt it into a film, but I hoped I would figure it out one day. Votes: 0

It's like low-budget filmmaking - a focus on dialogue and relationships over plot. Quirky. Improv. Votes: 0