James Franco is formally responding to two women who have accused him of sexually exploiting them in his now-shuttered acting school.
The 41-year-old filed a written objection to the suit filed in October by Sarah Tither-Kaplan and Toni Gaal, claiming in court docs obtained by People that the allegations were “salacious” and that they were “attention hungry.”
The documents stated: “While the salacious allegations in the complaint have made great tabloid fodder, they are also false and inflammatory, legally baseless and brought improperly in the form of a class action largely to gain as much publicity as possible.”
They continued: “This lawsuit is a travesty of justice and the culmination of a meritless campaign that has unfairly tarnished a decent man’s hard-earned reputation.”
The accusations first surfaced in January 18th in an article in The Los Angeles Times. Five women came forward, including Tither Kaplan, who said there was an “abuse of power” and a “culture of exploiting non-celebrity women and a culture of women being replaceable.”