James Franco has dropped out of his film adaptation of author Andre Dubus III’s The Garden of Last Days, which he was also starring in alongside Emilia Clarke.
From the writer of the bestselling novel House of Sand and Fog, Franco had planned to star as AJ, somewhat of an angry drunk, in the adaptation of Andre Dubus III’s The Garden of Last Days.
The novel is considered a contemporary American thriller, which tells the story of three strangers who cross paths in a Florida strip joint.
This was supposed to be a passion project for Franco, but he has left the project entirely, leaving it in shambles after a disagreement with the film’s financial backers Millenium. Reports are that Franco wished to use a particular crew for the film, but apparently they were too pricey for the production.
Deadline reports that this effectively causes the film to be entirely scrapped, after it had already spent $500,000 on pre-production, and had a $3 million budget. The film was supposed to start filming on July 10, but now that Franco has left, the film will no longer happen.
This was going to be one of actress Emilia Clarke’s first films, who is a massive fan favorite from HBO’s Game of Thrones TV series. We were looking forward to seeing her on the big screen alongside James Franco.
James Franco is also filming Good People, The Little Prince, and Third Person, so he certainly has some other films on his plate. We’ll most likely hear some additional details concerning this film dissolving so close to its start date.