James Franco ‘King of Sex’ at Sundance, finds ’50 Shades of Grey’ too vanilla

As of now, James Franco is unsure whether he’d like to take part in the upcoming 50 Shades of Grey film because his hands are already tied with promoting other sexual movies at Sundance.

According to MTV, Franco is currently in Park City, Utah to celebrate three of his sex-filled films at the Sundance Film Festival. In Lovelace, a story about a porn star who attempts to take control of her life despite the constraints of the industry and her coercive husband, he plays the role of Hugh Hefner. Franco further produced a documentary entitled Kink
surrounding Kink.com, a BDSM pornography studio located in San Francisco. Finally, Franco co-directed Interior. Leather Bar., a movie re-examining the last half hour of Cruising to explore sexual freedom.

Was the common theme of his films at Sundance this year a coincidence, or has Franco found his interest in the sex-charged niche? He sees it both ways.

"If you think about the origins of each of these films, it is a coincidence," he told MTV News. "But if you think about it as there's something in the air — and I do believe there are waves of things that interest filmmakers and people in television — then maybe it's not such a coincidence."

Franco also mentioned that 50 Shades fans will enjoy Kink if they are “brave” enough to watch a film based on the themes of the novel, minus the sugar-coating and romance.

"This is for all the 50 Shades of Grey fans," Franco continued. "This is what you're reading about. This is the real thing. This is what it looks like. This isn't the dime store version of bondage. This is what bondage is like."

However, Franco doesn’t understand the controversy over sexual themes in general. He views sex as just another part of life that everyone thinks about, whether in a positive or negative light.

"[S]ex and sexuality are such big parts of our lives — the ways that we define ourselves, the ways that we interact with each other," Franco added. "Everyone thinks about it. Everyone knows about it. Even if you insist on living an incredibly chaste life and you're chaste in your thoughts, that's a conscious and concerted effort to keep sex from your thoughts. So you're still engaging with sex even if it's in a negative capacity. It's a huge part of our lives. It's part of being human."

Franco hasn’t read the 50 Shades of Grey novels, and, depending on the film’s interpretation of BDSM, is debating whether to take part in the action.

“I think it’s a fascinating world, but it all depends on the take on it. There’s a way to make this world ugly, and there’s a way to make it interesting.” Franco discussed with The Daily Beast.