Sad trombone face. James Franco, the star of "Rise Of The Planets Of The Apes" (aside from the chimpanzee Cesar of course), was all set to do a cameo in "Dawn of the Planet of the Apes." The rub is that the original director Rupert Wyatt bowed out (Matt Reeves is now directing it) and so did Tom Rothman, who is no longer at Fox and Franco hasn't heard a peep since. So the actor assumes he's out. Via MTV.
"I was going to be a small part of the next one. There was a moment when Rupert Wyatt was going to direct the second one. A lot of the human characters that were in the first movie were dead in the sequel that Rupert was going to direct. But there was one scene, between Caesar and my character, maybe even just like on a video that was left behind, but then a lot of things happened, like [former Fox co-chairman] Tom Rothman who was a big part of the first movie, left. Now Rupert’s not a part of it so I don’t know. My guess is I won’t be in it. Nobody’s talked to me since Rupert left."
One would think since his relationship with Cesar was the heart and soul of the movie, they'd want much more than a cameo, but it seems like it's not meant to be. Perhaps it's for the best because as surprisingly great as "Rise Of The Planets Of The Apes" was, Franco always seemed like he was acting in an entirely different movie and didn't fit it like a glove. So far, the only actor on board for the sequel is Andy Serkis who will reprise his motion-capture expertise as the hero ape. Thoughts? Does it matter to you? "Dawn of the Planet of the Apes" rises May 23, 2014. Plenty of time to cast a new human lead.
@ GK, seriously people must come up with better excuses than publicist line.
@ We live in a world of technology and twitter is part of it. Critics reviewing movies quote feedbacks from tweets all the time concerning particular movies. Not sure why you find it funny, it makes sense. James Franco has a fanbase period.
Just remember the following:
1. The last time they killed James Franco off a franchise (Spiderman series), the franchise was quickly rebooted and he was the best performance in that franchise as a whole. 2. I remember the hate generated by Franco being in Rise of the Planet of the Apes last year via certain media outlets and the fact that it was truly successful movie. They wanted to attack him in regards to the movie failing but they couldn't, so they tried other methods, so I guess those fans will be truly happy, if he doesn't come back. Of course, it was essentially Andy's movie "ape" as the key word, who deserved an Oscar but James Franco played an important part and if you view tweets concerning Rise of the Planet of the Apes, they speak volumes in Franco's favour more than Andy now. Shame, but once the original Director left, I knew he might possibly follow. I'm sure Dawn will be successful but he will be missed by some.
Hey, Franco. SEE YA!