Busy Philipps has claimed that James Franco assaulted her on the set of Freaks And Geeks
.
The actors appeared on the cult series together in 1999 and 2000. Philipps played Kim Kelly, while Franco starred as Daniel Desario.
In a section of her upcoming memoir, This Will Only Hurt A Little
, which was obtained by Yahoo!, Philipps said the alleged incident happened while the pair were filming a scene where she was required to hit Franco gently in the chest while they were involved in a dialogue. Franco was apparently caught off guard by the action and broke character to react angrily.
“He grabbed both my arms and screamed in my face, ‘DON’T EVER TOUCH ME AGAIN!'” Philipps is said to have written. “And he threw me to the ground. Flat on my back. Wind knocked out of me.”
Philipps goes on to say that she tearfully described the alleged incident to her other Freaks and Geeks co-star Linda Cardellini, who suggested that Philipps report what happened to her manager. Philipps writes that Franco eventually apologized after being told to do so by the episode’s director and producers. Though he was asked to say sorry, Philipps says that Franco was never punished for his alleged behavior.
The excerpt from Philipps’ book comes nearly nine months after Franco was accused of sexual misconduct by more than five women. The star of HBO’s The Deuce
has denied the accusations, calling the accounts “not accurate.”
