Not getting there … James Franco and Anne Hathaway attempt to crack some funnies at the Oscars.

Most of the time, James Franco seems to be working on being the epitome of cool – most of the time, that is, when he isn’t acting, painting, studying for his PhD or teaching other Ivy League students.

But Oscar writer Bruce Vilanch has got the actor hot under the collar, criticising his performance at the much-derided Oscar ceremony. In an interview with New York Magazine, Vilanch complained that Franco “didn’t get there”, and that hosting a live show was “outside of those guys’ comfort zones.” He quipped that “I have to call James Franco and tell him the show’s over … He doesn’t know. He took a nap and he woke up in class.”

Franco responded by posting a tweet – “Bruce he let me down” – and a photo of himself and an open-mouthed Vilanch scrawled with speech bubbles. “James f***ed up at the Oscars,” it reads. “Trust me, I know comedy. I mean, come on, I write for Bette Midler!”

Clearly, Franco wasn’t particularly impressed by Vilanch’s view that presenting a live awards ceremony was “outside of those guys’ comfort zones.” The writer had dismissed rumours that Franco had been stoned on Oscars night but remarked that he “has so many balls in the air”.

And of course, he did manage to squeeze in a plug for one of his own clients. “The only people who know how to host those shows are people who get up onstage every night … Or people like Bette [Midler] who get up and sing all night and tell stories.”

But perhaps Franco shouldn’t take the episode to heart – when it comes to comperes, Vilanch is a hard man to please. In February he complained that Ricky Gervais’ outrageous Golden Globes performance was “mean-spirited”, lacked fresh material and “never hit funny”, and even criticised the comedian for having slimmed down and “lost his cuddly [look].”

smh.com.au

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