James Franco

The same James Franco who was on Freaks and Geeks, the same James Franco who came this close to getting nominated for an Oscar last year for Milk, that James Franco is next set to star on General Hospital. You know, the soap opera?

It sounds like a joke, but a network rep confirmed the story.

Everyone's fighting to get jobs right now, including some of Hollywood's biggest leading men.

James Franco, who's currently filming Howl, in which he plays poet Allen Ginsberg, and Robert Pattinson, who's busying working on the Twilight series, are reportedly competing over which actor is going to get to portray "Hallelujah" singer Jeff Buckley in an upcoming biopic.

May the best eye-candy (and singer, we guess) win.

There are a veritable Rat Pack of stars lining up to play Frank Sinatra in an upcoming biopic of the singer and actor.

Martin Scorsese is directing the film and is in need of an actor to play young Sinatra. The shortlist of actors being considered includes such Hollywood heavyweights such as Johnny Depp, James Franco, Jake Gyllenhaal, Justin Timberlake, Mark Wahlberg, Michael Bublé and Jon Hamm, and Leonardo DiCaprio.

In a bit of a surprise bit of casting new, Jamie Foxx is also apparently in the running.

James Franco was seen on location and in wardrobe for his new film Howl yesterday.

He plays legendary Beat poet, Allen Ginsberg. Obviously before Ginsberg was bald and portly but still with his signature spectacles.

Yesterday was the first day of filming in Long Island City, New York.

Howl is considered one of the preeminent works of the Beat movement but it was also once considered so obscene it was banned and led to an obscenity trial in 1957, two years after its publication.

Last night the Independent Spirit Awards were handed out and the winners were:

Best Feature: The Wrestler, Darren Aronofsky, Scott Franklin

Best Director: Tom McCarthy, The Visitor

Best First Feature: Synecdoche, New York, Charlie Kaufman

Best First Screenplay: Dustin Lance Black, Milk

Best Supporting Female: Penelope Cruz, Vicky Cristina Barcelona

Best Supporting Male: James Franco, Milk

Let's get the painful worst out of the way first so we can end this year on the high note of what was great.

Worst
1. Hounddog
A terribly written, amateurishly directed, horrendously acted, self-important parable about lost innocence rife with Adam and Eve symbolism; the film’s major claim to fame is the rape of 12-year-old Dakota Fanning. To call it offensively bad is to be kind. 

The New York Times Screen Test series interviewed James Franco and we were blown away by how charming he was.

We’ve never been a fan of Franco’s. When we’ve dealt with him on a personal level, he’s always been a pompous asshole, but, ever since seeing him in Milk, we find ourselves oddly intrigued, even, dare we say, seduced. 

And his self-deprecating candor in the interview might have inflamed the situation.

This year’s Golden Globe nominees were announced early Thursday morning with The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Doubt and Frost/Nixon leading the pack with five nominations each.

And, no, that pun's not intended.

In next month's Elle Magazine, James Franco talks about working with Sean Penn on the Gus Van Sant-directed film Milk about Harvey Milk, the first openly gay elected official in the United States. Apparently Penn was responsible for getting the love scenes between the two actors into the film.