​Scarlett Johansson Calls Out James Franco At Women's March

Scarlett Johnasson has called out actor James Franco at the LA Women's March, after he was accused of sexual conduct by several women.

While Johansson didn't directly name-check Franco, it was pretty obvious who she was talking about.

With fellow actress Mila Kunis holding the microphone for her, Johansson said: "How could a person publicly stand by an organisation that helps to provide support for victims of sexual assault while privately preying on people who have no power?"

She paused for effect, before asking Franco for her pin back, referring to the Time's Up badge he wore at the Golden Globes ceremony on 7 January.

PA

Five women have recently accused Franco of inappropriate or sexually exploitative behaviour - the most high-profile accusation coming from actress Ally Sheedy.

She's since deleted the tweets from her Twitter account, but one of them read: "James Franco just won. Please never ask me why I left the film/TV business," according to the Independent.

Another woman, Violet Pavey, who claims to have once had a consensual relationship with Franco, alleges that he once forced her into an oral sex act when they were in his car.

Franco was also apparently found to be messaging a teenager on Instagram and pursued her even after finding out she was 17.

While Franco, speaking through his lawyer Michael Plonsker, has denied the allegations made by all five women, he has reportedly called to apologise to both Tither-Kaplan and Paley.

PA

As well as addressing Franco in her speech, Johansson also took the opportunity to give a rousing personal story about learning to trust her own instincts.

"Suddenly I was 19 again and I began to remember all the men who had taken advantage of the fact that I was a young woman who didn't yet have the tools to say no, or understand the value of my own self-worth," she said.

"I had many relationships both personal and professional where the power dynamic was so off that I had to create a narrative that I was the cool girl who could hang in and hang out, and that sometimes meant compromising what felt right for me."

She also told the crowd to stop feeling bad about hurting others' feelings at the risk of neglecting their own.

"No more pandering. No more feeling guilty about hurting someone's feelings when something doesn't feel right for me," she continued.

"I have made a promise to myself to be responsible to my self, that in order to trust my instincts I must first respect them."

Topics: Entertainment News, Entertainment, Celebrity, Scarlett Johansson, Golden Globes

Jess Hardiman

Jess is a journalist at LADbible who graduated from Manchester University with a degree in Film Studies, English Language and Linguistics - indecisiveness at its finest, right there. She also works for FOODbible and its sister page Seitanists, which are both a safe haven for her to channel a love for homemade pasta, fennel and everything else in between. You can contact Jess at [email protected].

@Jess_Hardiman