Sharon Stone defends Franco, calls allegations 'appalling'

Stone, who played a small role in Franco's The Disaster Artist, said while she applauds #MeToo efforts to dismantle Hollywood's longstanding culture of protecting powerful, predatory men, she also denounces what she sees as the unjust persecution of some male celebrities without "due process".

"I'm appalled with what's happening with him," Stone, 59, said in an interview with Marc Maron on 'WTF' podcast. "He's the loveliest, kindest, sweetest, most elegant, nicest..." she added. After Franco won a Golden Globe for best actor in January, while wearing a Time's Up pin at the awards ceremony, he was accused by at least five women of sexually inappropriate behaviour.

Four of the accusers who shared their allegations with the Los Angeles Times were Franco's former film school students, while a fifth said Franco was her mentor.