James Franco might very well be one of the most annoyingly pretentious actors on the planet with his manner of speaking in Petrarchian sonnets and tendency to declare his own butt to be “art,” but he did a decent thing that I’ll get to in just a bit. For the moment, however, I wanted to touch upon a recent Franco interview in which he admitted that the rumors concerning his sexuality are mostly his fault because he admits that he’s cultivated the resulting intrigue as “part of my public image.” Further, James has stirred the pot not only by playing gay characters in Howl and Milk but also by stating “Maybe I’m just gay” when asked.

For the record, I don’t think that James Franco is either gay or bisexual. Instead, I think he consistently manipulates his own image in his usual artsy-fartsy way, and he truly thinks that appearing sexually ambiguous will make him look like more of an artist. I think that Franco is totally straight and just messing with everyone, and if I were a gay man, I’d probably be at least a little bit offended.

Enough of my theories though, for James has gone and done something decent. If you’ll remember, Franco recently co-directed a movie called Interior. Leather Bar with Travis Mathews. The movie was a reimagining of gay S&M footage that was inspired by a so-called missing reel from 1980’s Cruising, and it didn’t make any waves at Sundance this year, but now Mathews has gone on to promote another movie featuring gay sex at several Aussie gay film festivals. Unfortunately, Australia has banned the film from even screening at these gay-leaning festivals due to sexual content, and Franco thinks this is utter crap. For once, the dude actually has a point:

James Franco is speaking out against Australia’s ban on I Want Your Love, the new gay-themed film directed by Travis Mathews.

In a new video originally posted by Out Magazine, Franco, who collaborated with Mathews on Interior. Leather Bar., calls the Australian Classification Board’s decision to yank the film from planned screenings at gay film festivals in Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane “really silly” and “very short-sighted.”

Noting that “sex in films hasn’t had a chance to grow and become a sophisticated storytelling device,” Franco adds, “Frankly, adults should be able to choose … I don’t know why in this day and age, something like this…is being banned. It’s just embarrassing.”

According to its official website, I Want Your Love tells the story of a young gay man in San Francisco who prepares to return to his Midwestern roots. “Torn between his creative dreams and the reality of earning a living, he’s forced to take responsibility by redefining what it means to be an artist, a gay man, and an adult,” a synopsis reads.

Mathews served as co-director and screenwriter of Interior. Leather Bar., which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January.

“Every f–king love story is a dude that wants to be with a girl, and the only way they’re going to end up happy is if they walk off into the sunset together,” Franco told Entertainment Weekly before the premiere of his film. “I’m f–king sick of that s–t. So if there’s a way for me to just break that up in my own mind, I’m all for it.”

[From HuffPo]

Here’s a video clip of Franco’s statement on Australia’s ban of Travis Mathews’ film. Franco is clearly sticking up for his friend and co-director here, but he also speaks some common sense. How strange for James Franco to open his mouth without trying to make himself sound like the smartest man in the universe!

Photos courtesy of WENN