The 39-year-old actor has been accused of sexual harassment and abuse of power by both women he has worked with in the entertainment industry, and former students in at his New York acting school.
But HBO have decided the allow Franco to return playing twin brothers Vincent and Frankie Martino in the second season of the drama about the rise of porn industry in 1970s New York.
According to Entertainment Tonight, ‘The Deuce’ scriptwriter Megan Abbott told reporters at the Writers Guild Awards ceremony at the Edison Ballroom in New York City on Sunday (11.02.18) that Franco would “of course” be joining the show next season.
Franco became the subject of speculation after several women, including ‘The Breakfast Club’ actress Ally Sheedy made accusations about him on social media during the Golden Globes Awards, where he picked up the award for Best Actor in a Musical or Comedy for his performance in ‘The Disaster Artist’.
Several days after the ceremony an article was published in the Los Angeles Times detailing the accounts of five women who accused the ‘Pineapple Express’ star of inappropriate behaviour.
Franco then appeared on ‘The Late Show with Stephen Colbert’ to address the claims.
Asked about the tweets he said: “I haven’t read them. I’ve heard about them.
“I have no idea what I did to Ally Sheedy. I had nothing but a great time with her. I have total respect for her.
“If I have done something wrong, I will fix it – I have to. That’s how that works. I don’t know what else to do.”
The Deuce co-creator and executive producer David Simon said in a statement following the publication of LA Times report that HBO had not received any complaints against Franco.
Simon told Variety: “Personally I can only speak knowledgeably to ‘The Deuce’. I’ve checked with all my fellow producers and other personnel. We have no complainant or complaint or any awareness of any incident of concern involving Mr. Franco. Nor has HBO been approached with any complaint.
“In our experience, he was entirely professional as an actor, director, and producer,”
Franco’s former high school – Palo Alto Senior High School – has removed a mural he painted following the allegations.
The ‘127 Hours’ star graduated from the school in California, back in 1996, and in 2014, he took part in a number of fundraising events for the school including contributing hand-painted artwork and muralsjAME