James Franco Explains Oscar Bomb, Invokes Looney Tunes [Video]

The multitasking actor visits “Letterman” to explain why he bombed at the Oscars

It turns out that all James Franco may have needed to make it out of the Academy Awards telecast unscathed were a few shots of Red Bull.

On a self-deprecating appearance on "Late Show with David Letterman" set to air on CBS this Friday night, Franco finally addresses his infamous outing as Oscar co-host. His reasoning for why his performance may not have worked?

"Maybe I had low energy," says the "127 Hours" star, adding that he hasn't seen the show and that "I honestly played those lines as well as I could."

Franco may have selected "Late Night" as the venue to discuss his Oscars debacle because Letterman has one of those in his past, too. The CBS host went through similar post-hosting criticism in 1995, after lines like his "Oprah. Uma. Uma. Oprah." bit fell flat with the general public.

Letterman asked Franco why criticism about his incredibly laid-back demeanor on the February 27 telecast has even bothered him, prompting a burst of sarcasm from his guest.

"I never dreamed of being, like, the best Oscar host ever," Franco explained. "It was never on my list of things to do. It doesn't mean I didn't care and it doesn't mean I didn't try hard, right?

"But here's the hypocritical thing: Leading up to the Oscars, I couldn't hear enough about how, 'Oh, people don't care about the Oscars anymore, it's dead, it's old, it's at the end of a long awards season, who cares about it?' Well, as soon as you don't host the way you want to, they suddenly care and they won't shut up about it! Suddenly, I can't hear enough about a show they don't care about!"

He also joked about why he thinks people thought he was stoned.

"People said I was under the influence," said Franco. "I've thought about it. I think I know why. I love her, but Anne Hathaway is so energetic, I think the Tasmanian Devil would look stoned standing next to Anne Hathaway."

Ah, there it is, a Looney Tunes reference. This is why the world loves James Franco.

Check out a preview of Franco's appearance on "Letterman" below.

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