What is a genital guard in acting and what did Sarah Tither-Kaplan say about James Franco?
The Disaster Artist star has been accused of removing actress' genital guards when filming an orgy scene in a 2015 film
HOLLYWOOD star James Franco is the latest name to be accused of sexual misconduct towards women - and allegation he strongly denies.
The 39-year-old has been accused of forcibly removing actress' 'genital guards' during an orgy scene - here we look at what they are and how they are used.
What are the allegations made against James Franco?
James Franco is accused of taking the genital guards off actresses during an orgy scene as five women made sex misconduct claims against him – which his lawyer strongly denies.
The Golden Globe winner was dragged into the sex scandal sweeping Hollywood after several women made allegations against him.
Two former student actresses, Hilary Dusome and Natalie Chmiel, described negative on-set experiences with the actor-filmmaker while being directed by him in a article.
What is a genital guard?
Camera trickery lets audiences believe that actors and actresses are enjoying a real life romp when you see a sex scene on screen - but in reality, it couldn't be less sexy.
Actors can spend hours pretending to have wild passionate sex with each other, but all the while they'll be wearing different gadgets and cleverly cut underwear to protect their modesty.
A genital guard for a woman looks similar to a large shoe horn, and is attached to the actress' privates with a latex glue.
It's also not uncommon for a pair of flesh coloured knickers to be cut at the sides and stuck on at the front and back.
Men normally wear "socks", which is a flesh coloured pouch with a tie that they can pop their bits in before shooting a naked or intimate scene.
What did Sarah Tither-Kaplan say about James Franco?
Two former student actresses described negative on-set experiences with the actor-filmmaker while being directed by him in a article.
Sarah Tither-Kaplan said in a nude orgy scene three years ago, he removed plastic guards covering the actresses' groins while simulating sex.
Franco’s attorney Michael Plonsker disputed all of the women’s allegations and directed The Times to Franco’s comments earlier this week, when he said he "completely supports people coming out and being able to have a voice" and promised to "fix" anything he had "done wrong".
Tither-Kaplan alleged that Franco asked her to play a prostitute in the film “The Long Home,” which starred Courtney Love, Josh Hutcherson and Timothy Hutton.
The part required her to perform nude, and Tither-Kaplan signed nudity agreements for her scenes.
But she claimed she became increasingly uncomfortable after the plastic guards were allegedly removed during the orgy scenes, leading her to regret performing in the film at all.
She also claimed one actress who declined to appear topless in a scene was sent home, noting: “I got it in my head pretty quickly that, okay, you don’t say ‘no’ to this guy.”
What has James Franco said about the allegations?
Franco’s attorney Michael Plonsker disputed all of the women’s allegations and directed The Times to Franco’s comments earlier this week, when he said he "completely supports people coming out and being able to have a voice" and promised to "fix" anything he had "done wrong".
Plonsker said: “The allegations about the protective guards are not accurate.”
He also provided a statement from “The Long Home” casting director Cynthia Huffman, in which she claimed she did not receive any complaints during filming and that she “personally checked on all the actresses constantly to make sure they were okay and comfortable.”
Huffman said in the statement: “James is all about giving up-and-comers, actors and actresses and young filmmakers a break in this business.
“I feel horrible that anyone was made to feel uncomfortable but we went to great lengths to make sure all the actresses in the nude scenes felt comfortable and safe.”