The first promotional image for the movie Michael surfaced showcasing James Franco and Zachary Quinto as lovers.

The movie Michael follows the story of real life former gay rights activist, Michael Glatze, who founded the Young Gay America magazine. After touring the country fighting for gay rights, Glatze renounced his homosexuality after dealing with some health issues.

In the film, Franco plays Glatze and Quinto plays Glatze's ex-boyfriend.

This is not Franco's first time portraying a gay man on the big screen. Franco also played a homosexual in Milk which was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture in 2009. Milk was directed by Gus Van Sant who happens to be the producer for Michael.

“My feeling about James, in particular, is that he’s someone who is really interested in generating a dialogue," Franco's co-star, Quinto told the Huffington Post.

Franco clearly shares the same level of mutual respect for Quinto based on his Instagram posts.

The film does not yet have an official release date but is currently being showcased at the American Film Market.

Image via Twitter from Indiewire

Image courtesy of Dara Kushner/INFphoto.com