James Franco graces the cover of this month’s Rolling Stone, and in the issue, he opens up about his apparent infatuation with gay culture.

Franco reveals that what fuels his “obsession” is his passion for sharing the stories LGBT figures on screen, something that first resonated with him when he was a student.

He says:
“When I was studying at NYU, I took classes in critical studies, and one of my favorites was on queer cinema.

“We’ve told the straight, heteronormative stories ad nauseam by now, in our movies, our shows, our commercials – everywhere.

“I think it’s healthy to make work that disrupts and questions that, and shows alternative narratives. That’s what an artist should do.”

Franco also tackled the rumors surrounding his sexuality, saying that he enjoys them, as they act as a “shield” when he dates women.
“One of the nice things about all that speculation is that it’s a smokescreen.”
Last year, the Oscar-nominated actor announced that he was in the midst of production for the film King Cobra, which will be based on the 2007 murder of gay porn filmmaker Bryan Kocis.

Franco also starred in the 2015 biopic I am Michael, which tells the controversial true story of a gay activist who denounces homosexuality to become a Christian pastor.

In addition to his work in film, he released a book entitled Straight James / Gay James, last year.

Above and beyond the aforementioned projects, Franco has explored LGBTI narratives from behind the camera as director for the films Sal about the 1976 death of openly gay Rebel Without A Cause actor Sal Mineo, the short film Interior, Leather Bar, and the 2011 film The Broken Tower, about American poet Hart Crane.

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