James Franco Says 'I Had to Change My Whole Way of Life' After Accusations: 'Being Told You're Bad Is Painful'

James Franco is coming to terms with his past. 

During an interview with Variety, published on Friday, Oct. 25 ahead of the Rome Film Festival premiere of his movie Hey Joe, Franco, 46, addressed a lawsuit he settled in 2021, after he was accused of sexually inappropriate behavior by five women, four of whom were his acting students.

Records PEOPLE obtained at the time showed he agreed to pay $2.235 million in the settlement. 

“Being told you’re bad is painful,” he told Variety, seemingly grateful for the wake-up call. “But ultimately, that’s kind of what I needed to just stop going the way I was going.”

“So now, after having the pause and, I think, changing priorities, I guess what I seek to fulfill me in life [is different],” Franco added about life since the controversy. 

His first film to be released since 2019 was this year’s French thriller The Price of Money: A Largo Winch Adventure. Although it debuted in France in July, there are currently no plans for an American release.

“Ultimately, I think I’m kind of grateful because it did afford me a chance to just do whatever private work and really change what I need to change,” Franco continued. “So now that I am working, I can just be there for the project. It’s not about me trying to fill some hole with work, it’s just about, ‘Wow, I have a really great life. I’m very grateful, and I hope to serve whatever project I do.’ ”

The Rise of the Planet of the Apes actor also shared what it was like to go from a beloved star to a Hollywood outcast. 

“I mean, it is what it is. I’ve honestly moved past it. It was dealt with, and I got to change. So that’s it, it’s over. I mean, I’ve worked in the U.S. too. So I’m just trying to move on,” he said.

Franco’s allegations and lawsuit didn’t just have a lasting impact on his career, but his friendships, too. 

“I haven’t talked to Seth. I love Seth, we had 20 great years together, but I guess it’s over,” he said of his relationship with Seth Rogen.

Rogen and Franco worked together on projects such as Freaks and Geeks, Pineapple Express, This Is The End and The Disaster Artist.

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“And not for lack of trying. I’ve told him how much he’s meant to me,” Franco added.

Hey Joe is directed by Claudio Giovannesi. 

The Italian drama stars Franco as “American sailor Dean Barry, 23 years old, [who] lands in Naples in 1944. Dean develops feelings for native Lucia, with whom he has a son. Dean is compelled to leave them but finally returns to see his family again, in a changed city,” per a synopsis.