James Franco is in talks to play Hugh Hefner in the Linda Lovelace biopic being helmed by his Howl buddies, Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman.
According to Variety, Franco was slated to have a bigger part, but the filmmakers felt that the talented thespian playing Hefner was too good an opportunity to pass up. Also joining the cast are Hank Azaria, Bobby Cannavale (a really underrated comedic actor), Chris Noth and Robert Patrick. Sharon Stone and Juno Temple also recently joined the independent flick, which stars Amanda Seyfried in the titular role of the world's most famous porn star.
A competing production headlined by Malin Akerman is also close to production.