James Franco, a modern renaissance man, is eyeing to direct an adaptation of Steve Erickson’s 2007 Hollywood novel Zeroville.
Currently studying for PhD in English, the 127 Hours star has actually bought the film rights to Zeroville. According to Pineapple Express producer Judd Apatow, Franco could often be found looking around heavyweight classics such as The Iliad . It confirms opinion that Franco has a habit of picking up projects left and right such as Holy Land, The Adderall Diaries and Sal Mineo biopic.
The darkly comic story is about Ike ‘Vikar’ Jerome, a 24-year-old student who arrives in Hollywood in 1969 with dreams of breaking into the movie business. The business of course is in the midst of a seismic shift as the decline of studios leads to the rise of independent directors.
Jerome soon becomes a successful film editor and gets on a Hollywood journey that ends in both tragedy and discovery. Characters in the book include legends as Robert De Niro, Brian De Palma, Ryan O’Neal, John Milius, Margot Kidder, Ali McGraw, Paul Schrader and the ghost of Montgomery Clift. Therefore, Jerome has tattoos of A Place in the Sun stars Montgomery Clift and Elizabeth Taylor on his head.
Franco will produce alongside Miles Levy and Vince Jolivette, but there are still no plans for the actors to star in the film. They are looking at an early 2012 start date.
As for Franco’s next project, he’ll be filming the big budget Oz The Great And Powerful directed by Sam Raimi. Besides, Franco will direct two short films for the tracks, That Someone is You and Blue, for R.E.M. new album Collapse Into Now.
That’s not all as he’s doing a street gang short Violent Art Film with Harmony Korine — very NSFW but not of Franco. You can check via Vulture an image behind the scenes that Franco tweeted and then removed.
What do you think of Franco?
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Fm6sa_L5_4[/youtube]
A Place In The Sun (1951) – Trailer
