James Franco addresses 'homophobic' Gawker report he's living with 'gay partner' Scott Haze

This time, he’s taken to Instagram to take on Gawker, who published an article that claims Franco has been cohabiting with a man

James Franco and Scott Haze at the Child of God premiere in New York on 30 July 2014

James Franco’s sexuality has, for some reason entirely unbeknown to anyone, been the repeat subject of speculation over the years.

Not one to take it lying down (pun intended), he often addresses rumours in the most comedic of fashions, posting mocked-up images of him in ‘steamy clinches’ with male love interests, or even recording entire spoof videos, like Kanye and Kim send-up “Bound 3” with Seth Rogen.

This time, he’s taken to Instagram to take on Gawker, who published an article that claims Franco has been living with a man – his friend and co-star, Scott Haze.

“But theirs is the kind of relationship - somewhat ambiguous, seemingly gay, probably romantic - that almost always sends The New York Times into a bizarre moral panic,” it read.

So he posted a screenshot of the headline alongside the caption: “GAWKER - always getting the cutting edge, homophobic scoop!!! Go see CHILD OF GOD in theaters and see me direct my live-in boyfriend, SCOTT HAZE!!! Love you SCOTT!!!!”

"Mr. Haze and Mr. Franco met about a decade ago when they were acting students in Los Angeles," Bernstein wrote. "They are now so close that describing them merely as friends would be a disservice.

"Now, it was 12:30 a.m. and Mr. Franco was clearly fading," it concluded. "An assistant pointed him and Mr. Haze to two waiting town cars. Mr. Franco expressed surprise, since they needed only one. 'We live in the same place,' he said."

"I don't even care if people think I'm gay, so it was like, 'Awesome!'" Franco told The Daily Beast in an interview last year. "I mean, I wish I was… I wish I was gay."