Paul Rust Recalls 'Upset' James Franco's Outburst over Bad Reviews for Hosting 2011 Oscars with Anne Hathaway

Mar. 15, 2025

Paul Rust and James Franco.Photo:Michael Kovac/Getty; Ernesto Ruscio/Getty

Michael Kovac/Getty; Ernesto Ruscio/Getty

Paul Rustis sharing an experience he had working withJames Francoshortly after the actor’s infamous 2011Academy Awardshosting stint.

On the Friday, Dec. 27 episode of theWith Gourley and Rustpodcast, the comedian and actor, 43, said he was reminded of an experience he had working with Franco, 46, as he and podcast cohost Matt Gourley discussed how and when people in the entertainment industry choose to discuss others' bad behavior.

“This is me now telling a story about somebody who’s been ostracized and so it will have no repercussions seemingly on my career,” Rust said. “Okay. I saw James Franco flip out once.”

Rust recalled that he acted in a CollegeHumor sketch filmed as part of a publicity campaign for Franco’s 2011 movieYour Highness, which he costarred in withDanny McBride. As Rust remembered, he was portraying one among “a group of nerds playing Dungeons & Dragons” with McBride, 48, and Franco. While Rust said McBride proved “very cool, no surprise,” he said that the video shoot took place “literally two days after [Franco] had hosted the Oscars withAnne Hathaway.”

“He was in a bad mood,” Rust shared. Franco and Hathaway’s Oscars hosting stint waswidely panned at the time, and Rust remembered that Franco “[had] his head down and he’s mumbling all of his lines and it’s unusable” as they attempted to film the sketch.

PEOPLE has reached out to Franco’s representatives for comment.

James Franco (left) and Anne Hathaway (right) on Feb. 27, 2011.A.M.P.A.S./Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty

A.M.P.A.S./Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty

According to Rust’s story, Franco grew more visibly upset after the shoot’s director confronted him about mumbling his dialogue and began “going off-script.”

“The joke that he’s probably tired of which is like ‘James Franco, Renaissance man,’ " he said. “So the premise is that each person picks their character and goes, ‘My character is Skippy the Great and he’s a warlock who has these powers,’ and then it cuts to James Franco and he goes, ‘My character is James Franco and he’s been getting into cooking chorizo.’ So he has to be self-effacing here, and that’s also part of the problem. So he starts doing ad-libs about other things people say about James Franco, but in the mumble voice, he’s still doing the mumbling thing.”

Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

“So he’s got his head down and he goes ‘James Franco was high on heroin when he was hosting the Oscars last night,’ " Rust added, recalling that even Franco’s publicist confronted him following the outburst.

“I faintly remember when the time came out people are like, ‘What is this guy, high the way he’s acting?’ " Rust said. “I don’t know if they were saying he was high on heroin, and for the record, I don’t think he was high. James Franco, I don’t think, lives his life in a way that he would be doing drugs.”

Rust also said that Franco started behaving poorly toward the other actors in the scene with him while “in character,” calling them “you f—- nerds.”

James Franco (right) and Anne Hathaway (left) on Feb. 27, 2011.GABRIEL BOUYS/AFP via Getty

GABRIEL BOUYS/AFP via Getty

“It reaches the point where I see James Franco stand up, kick a chair and storm out of the stage,” he said. As Rust recalled, Franco never returned to the set and the sketch was likely never released.

After relaying the story, Rust admitted that he feels people in Hollywood often don’t “tell tales out of school” because they do not want to be seen as someone who unearths open secrets.

“I’ve been on different sets where people go a little nutty, and you go, ‘Okay, I’m not going to talk about that in public,’ but I’m willing to stick my chin out for the canceled James Franco telling that story,' " he joked.

“I mean, it is what it is,” Franco toldVarietyduring an October interview, when asked if he felt what happened to his career “was unfair.”

“I’ve honestly moved past it,” he said at the time. “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.”

source: people.com